


Alter Egos

by MaybeMyth



Category: Voltron: Legendary Defender
Genre: All characters are present, Alter Egos, Alternate Universe - Superheroes/Superpowers, Angst, Blade of Marmora Keith, Dad Shiro, Enemies to Friends, Enemies to Friends to Lovers, Eventual Smut, Fluff, Friends to Enemies, Friends to Lovers, I really need to stop making SuperHero Aus, M/M, Rivals, SHEITH - Freeform, Secret Identity, Side Ships, Slow Build, SuperHero Shiro, Superheroes, Teacher Keith, Voltron is a superhero team, a lot of Angst actually, everyone has powers
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-09-08
Updated: 2018-12-16
Packaged: 2018-12-25 07:27:26
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 12
Words: 64,047
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12031062
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/MaybeMyth/pseuds/MaybeMyth
Summary: "Alter Ego"nounAl·ter E·goDefinition:1. A second self or different version of oneself2. A trusted friend3. The opposite side of a personalityAka the Superhero Au! No one but me asked for.





	1. First Glance

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Something about seeing Shiro always made Keith feel dirty. Maybe it was the guilt, and weight of all the lies he had to face every time, but Keith always walked away from his old flame with this disgusting, sinking feeling in his chest and a great need for a hot shower.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I've been holding onto some sheith stuff for a while, I never thought I'd actually post it, but here we are. I really hope you like it.  
> PS: I am looking for a Beta for this story! All I am asking in a Beta is someone to proof read, and catch last minute errors, and someone to discuss story ideas with. I have the general plot for this all mapped out, but I think it would be wonderful to hear other opinions and ideas for this AU, and I do always offer some creative liberties to my betas!  
> If you are interested hit me up on tumblr @ https://gaythoughtsandfeelings.tumblr.com/ to discuss it more and get an email address. if you don't have a tumblr, hit me up in the comments for my email!

_Patience Keith, Patience._

He reminds himself as he crouches on the tiny fifth floor balcony; He’s getting antsy. He’s been there for an hour now, waiting for the opportune moment. He wants to get the job over and done with so he can continue on with his day, and the cold morning air combined with the empty feeling in his stomach wasn’t exactly helping him concentrate. It was honestly starting to irritate him.

 How long could this one man possibly take?

“Hold on” the voice below him is quiet, subtle, and accompanied by the sound of a door sliding open. There’s a light tap as the man steps out onto the balcony below, then the door is closed behind him. There’s a pause, and only the occasional foot step, or the sound of something being gently moved breaks in the air.

 The man is checking his surroundings, checking to make sure he really is alone.

“Continue, Sir” The voice remains low when he begins talking again, he has determined that he’s safe. He’s wrong. Unbeknownst to him, one of the most skilled assassins is waiting to strike right above him. Keith is eager, he wants to move now, but it’s still not the right time.

_Be Patient. Patience yields focus. Wait till his guard is fully down, make the most of this._

“No Sir, they are still inactive” the voice below talks like a solder. He’s monotone, reciting pre-scripted lines, confined in his vocabulary. Much like a robot. Keith supposes that’s all he really is in the end.

“I will keep you updated, Sir” He continues. Keith is a bit curious about the topic at hand, and he does make a mental note of it, but he can’t let it distract him from his mission.

“No Sir, he has not activated it” _activated what? That doesn’t sound good._

“Yes Sir, I’ll report back soon, Sir. Vr-“There.  The man takes a moment to sigh, and he hesitates, and Keith knows it’s the perfect time to strike. Before the man can even get out his salute, Keith is up, and swinging over the side of the balcony just to gracefully land on the one below. The man’s eyes go wide in fear and shock, as he drops his cell phone.

“Oh God. No. Oh No, please don’t kill me” Keith is in front of the man in seconds, holding his luxite dagger to the targets throat. He can see the reflection of his mask in the man’s glasses. The cold grey metal accented with glowing lines across the cheeks and purple orbs for eyes is a well-known symbol. The mask strikes fear into his opponent for good reason.

“Don’t kill me. I’ll give you anything you want. Money? I have money, I’ll pay you whatever you want!” The man started to babble as he begged desperately for his life. Keith wanted to laugh, but as usual, he remained silent. This man wasn’t worth his life.

Keith doesn’t like killing, he only does it when necessary and this pitiful man wasn’t worth staining his hands. The blade only used their daggers on true evil; on the Galra. This man was nothing more than their pawn. Marmora only wanted this guy out of the way.

Keith reaches behind himself, and pulls out the red envelope he had safely tucked into his belt. He shoves it into the man’s chest, and pulled his knife away from his throat. He pointed the end of the blade at the man, and then pointed it to the door. The man took the hint, and quickly scrambled out the balcony door, and out of the hotel room altogether, leaving behind all his stuff. Smart. Inside that little envelope is a plane ticket, and instructions on what to do from hear on, and a warning to never contact the Galra again. If the man had any common sense, he’d take it. The Blade won’t go after him a second time, but The Galra don’t take lightly to traitors or Cowards.

Once the target was gone, Keith locked the door, and started searching through the room. He had accomplished one part of his mission, but he still had to retrieve something from here in order for his leader to be happy.

See, Keith works for an organization called ‘The Blade of Marmora,’ a sort of vigilante community that works to protect themselves and other people from a really nasty organization called The Galra.

Galra is like the worst of the worst. It’s not uncommon for some people to be born with a mutated gene that grants them extraordinary powers far beyond normal human capabilities. What Galra aim to do is submit people to cruel tests and experiments that either awaken or push their abilities, ultimately creating a superior race of superhuman soldiers. Every member in The Blade of Marmora is a victim of The Galra, and while Keith himself wasn’t, his mother was a Galra experiment.

 _Bingo._ Keith finds exactly what he was looking for. The man had hidden his laptop in the hotel rooms linen closet, wedged in between two towels. Keith is starting to think his target isn’t the sharpest crayon in the box, and is proven correct when he brings the laptop back to the bed, and finds that the password is the man’s birth year, but backwards. Keith is willing to bet that’s also the Pin for his credit cards.

It took him a while, but Keith finally finds the file he needs. Once he skims over it, and is satisfied with his work, he is ready to leave. Before he can even budge, however, he’s rudely interrupted by a tall figure leaning in the balcony door frame.

 

“I’ve never seen you run someone out of town before…What are you up to?”

Keith’s head pops up to glare at the intruder. As usual, his heart stutters when his gaze falls up Shiro.

Takashi Shirogane; once upon a time he was Keith’s best friend, and object of affection. Now he’s the famous ‘Lion Shadow’; Superhero extraordinaire, and the Golden Boy of Galaxy City. He also happens to be Keith’s greatest rival; at least according to the media.

Lion Shadow wears a black body suit, covered with pieces of silver armor. The outfit reminds Keith of a knight, which is eerily fitting for Shiro. He’s at least 6’2 and built like he was meant to be a bronze statue of a God. Through the solid black helmet, you couldn’t see his face, but Keith is all too familiar with Shiro’s piercing grey eyes, and the scar that travels over the bridge of his nose. He’s still not used to the tuft of white forelock that now accompanies Shiro’s classic black undercut, but he can still picture it being matted underneath that helmet. If everyone knew how gorgeous Shiro was outside of uniform, the city would love him that much more.

“Red Blade?” Shiro uses his ‘Commanders Voice’ to get Keith’s attention. He knows that power doesn’t actually work on Keith, his mask blocks it, but he tries anyway.

 Keith groans internally, hating the way Shiro uses that name. He hates every interaction he has to have with Lion Shadow, because each time he has to remind himself that it’s not Shiro. It’s not his Shiro. His Shiro died in a Galra attack. His Shiro would have found him, but here they are, three years later, and still painfully separated.

“Red Blade. I’ll ask you again: What are you doing here?” Shiro starts to take a few steps towards Keith, who in turn quickly panics. He doesn’t like when Shiro gets too close to them. He shifts the laptop towards the Black Knight, so he can show off what he found.

“Oh” The hero mutters, Keith can imagine the way his eyebrows would furrow, and how his mouth would hang open. “Oh, that’s not good” He continues. Keith nods his head in a ‘Duh’ type of manner.

Keith never speaks while he’s acting as The Red Blade. He doesn’t use his powers either. He doesn’t do anything that could potentially clue Shiro into who he really is. His whole secret identity was built around hiding from his old best friend.

“Are there more?” Shiro stares at the screen in bewilderment. Keith nods and moves to show Shiro the rest. He understands the fear that hides in the others voice. The Blade went after this guy for a reason. On the surface, he was just an ordinary guy on the city maintenance staff with a knack for tech. However, The Blade of Marmora discovered that The Galra were actually using this guy to plant cameras all around the city. They had live feeds from the most important locations around the city; Town Hall, the Mall, the main streets, the parks, the schools and of course The Castle of Lions. The building that once held some of history’s greatest heroes, and used to act as one of the greatest schools for children with the Quintessence Gene. Now it’s practically empty, and only a fraction of the powerful place it used to be. However, it is still home to Galaxy City’s greatest. The Castle of Lions was Shiro’s home. The very place Keith left him all those years ago.

“I need to get this back to Allura” Shiro mumbles under his breath, shaking a bit after seeing The Castle on the video feed. He steps forward more, and tries to grab the laptop, but Keith is fast. Faster than Shiro, but he is careful not to be too fast. He slaps Shiro’s hand away before he can even get in reach.

“I can’t let you take this. I don’t know what you’re going to do with it” The Hero starts to argue, stepping closer. Keith rolls his eyes, even though his opponent can’t see the gesture. Keith raises one hand, letting Shiro see everything he’s doing, and with his other hand he pulls a little flash drive from his glove. Blade of Marmora suits are meant to be practical, and are built for stealth. In the gloves, on the pads of the index fingers there are tiny slits that act sort of like pockets. The micro flash drives were built specifically for things like this. Keith moves practically in slow motion as he installs it into the computer, downloading every last possible, useful file, then retrieves his chip, and putting it back in its slot. He closes up the laptop, picks it off the bed, and gently holds it out to Shiro. The Knight just stares at it for a second, then looks up at to Keith before taking it.

“Uh Thanks?” Keith gives a jerk of his head to confirm, and then bolts past Shiro to get to the balcony. He swings over the railing with ease, and makes his way down to an alley behind the hotel where he stashed his motorcycle. His leader is going to kill him for not bringing back the original evidence, but he also thought it was important to share this information with Shiro. His house was being spied on after all. His report would have to wait though, he had a day job to get ready for.

 

 

 

* * *

 

 

 

 

Something about seeing Shiro always made Keith feel dirty. Maybe it was the guilt, and weight of all the lies he had to face every time, but Keith always walked away from his old flame with this disgusting, sinking feeling in his chest and a great need for a hot shower.

There was nothing quite like trying to scrub away the shame with hot water and cinnamon scented bath wash on an early Friday morning. The boiling water that hits his skin is soothing and helps calm him. The hour he spends just soaking up the water and washing his hair is all the time he needs to purge his mind of Shiro, as much as he possibly can anyway. He reminisces a bit about the old days, the good times he had with his friend. Then he takes a while to distance himself from those memories, and remind himself that his friend doesn’t exist anymore. It always hurts, and it’s not unusual for this to end in a couple tears, but that’s the point of the shower. To get rid of all those harsh emotions before trying to continue on with his life.

After his shower, he continues on with his usual routine. He picks out a red sweater and some black jeans. Comfortable and warm was Keith’s preferred style. It was his preferred way of life too. He combs through his messy black hair, that reaches a good inch or two above his shoulders, and pulls it back into his usual short pony tail. A couple loose hairs fall out in the front to frame his face a bit, but he doesn’t really mind. He puts on a bit of deodorant and cologne, and tops off his look with his classic cherry red Doc Marten boots, and a black leather jacket. Before leaving his little apartment, he’s sure to grab his keys, his cell phone, and the messenger bag with all his paper work. When he steps outside, and is instantly hit by that cold, late September air, he yet again curses the fact that he’s only allowed to use his Blade of Marmora motorcycle while working as Red Blade, and is otherwise vehicle-less.

Lucky for him, he managed to find an apartment that was only a block and a half from his day job. The walk actually isn’t that bad. It’s mainly silent, with the occasional car or barking dog. Not many people were out and about at 6 AM. Technically Keith didn’t even have to be up this early, but he liked to go beforehand so he can set everything up for the day.

Despite the walk being fairly decent, it was always a relief to see the city elementary school finally come into view. He passes through the front office very quickly, just to check in with everyone, give his hellos, and grab anything that happened to be in his little mail box before heading to his first-grade classroom. This was actually his first year as a real teacher, before this he had only been a substitute and a tutor, so he was still getting used to things. He sets up his lesson plan for the day, and gets all the needed materials ready.

Keith’s not particularly the best with little kids, but he’s definitely getting used to it. He became a teacher because he wanted to help people, and he figured he didn’t necessarily need to be a Blade member to that. There were plenty of more common ways that he could help change lives. This was one of them. It was a fulfilling job, but it was also a decent cover. Who would ever expect an assassin to spend his day teaching six-year old’s how to spell.

“That should do it” He mumbles to himself when he finally finishes grading a previous day of homework. He sets it aside, and glances around the room. Keith’s classroom is among one of the plainer rooms. Most were decorated with encouraging, educational posters and the children’s colorful artwork. He hasn’t really had time to put anything up, but now he’s short on time. Tonight, is the first parent teacher meeting of the year. The first chance for parents to come in and really get to meet their kid’s teacher, and see what they’ve done so far in class. He really should get some stuff up on the walls before then if he wants to make a god impression.

He doubles checks the clock, and glances out the window from his desk to see a couple students already lining up outside. Keith gets up at props open the classroom door for the kids to escape the cold. There’s only a couple kids there already, the kids whose parents have to leave for work earlier in the morning, but they all greet him with smiles and an energetic ‘Good Morning Mr.K!’  because ‘Kogane’ is a bit too hard for some of them to pronounce. They all put their little backpacks in their assigned cubby on the shelf by the door.

“Hi Mr. K!” Right when Keith starts to head back to his desk, the little ball of energy that is Ryou Shirogane tumbles into his class.

“Morning Ryou” Keith smiles down at the seven-year-old. The first time Keith looked at his class roster, and saw that name, he practically fainted. As luck would have it, Ryou happens to be the son of Shiro’s little brother of the same name.

Of course, Keith knew that Shiro had a brother, but he had never actually met Ryou. The two Shirogane brothers had a very distant relationship, and Keith had only seen pictures of Ryou as a child, and Keith only knew as much about the brother as Shiro did, which wasn’t a lot. Keith didn’t even know Ryou had a child. When they were little, Shiro and Ryou were practically identical, and unfortunately for Keith, junior here was basically a minute copy of the Shiroganes. He had the same cold gray eyes and the same raven black, wispy hair. Keith even has the pictures to prove the comparison. Little Ryou Shirogane is also the reason why Keith nearly had a heart attack on the first day of school.

He only calmed down when he realized that Shiro didn’t exactly talk to his brother, let alone see him. Shiro probably didn’t even know that Ryou Junior existed, and that meant there was no chance Keith would have to run into him while at his day job. He was nervous that he might have to face Shiro’s brother, who might not recognize him by face, but could very possibly recognize his name.

“Are your parents coming to back to school night?” Keith asks, watching Ryou pull out his little pencil case before shoving the rest of his backpack into his cubby square.  
“No” Ryou frowned. On one hand, he does feel a bit bad for the kid. Ryou is usually a really happy, energetic kid, but whenever you mention his parents, he gets a bit sad. Apparently, his parents are really busy, and hardly ever around. Which is why he still hasn’t had to meet them. On the other hand, Keith is relieved to avoid confronting Shiro’s brother for as long as possible.

“Maybe next time, kiddo. Today were going to have a lot of fun” He smiles as he reaches out to ruffle Ryous hair. He doesn’t really know what else to say to cheer up the kid, and there is other students starting to enter the class, but that seems to do the trick, because Ryou smiles back at him before bouncing off to his seat. Once all the kids are in their seats and ready, Keith decides to actually start class. Usually the day is broken up into different time slots for different subjects, but today Keith mainly wants to do some fun arts and crafts projects for their back to school night. He probably should have planned ahead, because he does want to give a good impression, but this is just going to have to do.

He’s survived a lot of shit over the years; fights, nasty wounds, explosions, and intense training from The Blade of Marmora, but somehow none of that was nearly as terrifying as watching the parents of his students start to show up at his classroom.

He had spent the whole day with his students making different art projects to help spruce up the classroom. His class was on the smaller side, with only 19 students, compared to the maximum of about 25. He started by putting them in groups for each project. First, they made the Alphabet to span the upper part of the front wall. Each group got one or two letters and they made a colorful little poster for each one, and decorated it with different things that started with that letter. Then they made a number line for one of the side walls, each kid got a number and colored and decorated it however they wanted. Just to make it even, Keith did number twenty.

 After that they had their usual 15-minute recess, and then they read some stories. He read them ‘Brown Bear, Brown Bear, what do you see?’ by Bill Martin Jr and then let them pick either that book or one of the previous Dr. Seuss books they read to draw a picture from.

 He did some of the usual math and spelling worksheets with them, but he thought since it was mid-September, he would use fall related things. They had their lunch break and Keith had his, and to finish up the day he thought he would have them make some little poems about fall, which were really just random words tossed together, and let them finger paint some pictures to go with it.

He gave them a little lesson about fall; how the leaves changed colors and started to fall off trees, and how it started to get colder outside and what kind of new things grew in the fall. Then he let them loose to scribble down whatever fall inspired image they got in paint. He hung those up last so they would have a chance to dry. He hung up everything they worked on that day, as well as some stuff from earlier in the year.

 He posted whatever work that had the best grades for each student, and put up the ‘about me’ posters they all made on the first day of class that had their name, their favorite color, food and game, how old they were, what they liked to do, and a little self portrait of themselves.

Keith managed to cover his class with all sorts of colorful work from his students by the time the first set of parents got there.

All the parents came with their kids a bit sporadically. They usually popped into Keith’s room in groups of 2 or 3.  They all asked the same questions. They only wanted to know if their kids were behaving properly, what kind of lessons Keith taught, and what he planned to teach them in the future. He had met most of the parent’s prior, since He has to make sure all his students are picked up after school by proper guardians. The parents that can’t pick up their kids usually send another family member, a Neighbor or a babysitter that’s confirmed by the school.

Most parents just come in really quick, hear Keith’s little speech, see their kids work, ask a few questions, and then leave. There are always a couple parents that come in with weird and random complaints. A mother complains that Keith incorporates too many artistic elements to his lessons. A father complains that Keith isn’t grading his daughter’s homework correctly, but that’s about it. One of the single mothers, a good 17 years older than Keith’s age of 22 tries to casually hit on him, and that was a lot more uncomfortable then the parents that complained. Thankfully, It only lasts about an hour, and by 6:30 Keith is starting to pack up his stuff, ready to finally go home and relax a bit.

 

“I am so sorry, I know I am late but I-“Every bone in Keith’s body turns to ice as his head whips away from his bag to stare at the entrance way.  There was only one student Keith hadn’t seen during the last hour. The one student who already told him he wouldn’t be attending. That meant there could only be one person showing up late.

“K-Keith?” At the door to his class stands one Takashi Shirogane, looking a bit disheveled in a plain black shirt and blue jeans. His hair windblown and messy. Gray eyes wide and watery as he stares at Keith. The metal prosthetic hand, curtesy of The Galra, clenches at his side, while his other, normal human hand holds onto a very confused looking little Ryou.

_Oh Fuck._

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is my first Sheith fic, so I really hope you guys like it. Please let me know what you think in the comments, I would love some feed back!  
> PS: I am looking for a Beta for this story! All I am asking in a Beta is someone to proof read, and catch last minute errors, and someone to discuss story ideas with. I have the general plot for this all mapped out, but I think it would be wonderful to hear other opinions and ideas for this AU, and I do always offer some creative liberties to my betas!  
> If you are interested hit me up on tumblr @ https://gaythoughtsandfeelings.tumblr.com/ to discuss it more and get an email address. if you don't have a tumblr, hit me up in the comments for my email!


	2. Reunited

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> "It's good to have you back"  
> "It's good to be back"

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> be warned, this is a really, really long chapter.

Shiro always walked away from his rival feeling uneasy and disoriented. Something about Red Blade felt eerily familiar to him, and he always had the strangest urge to reach out towards the silent assassin whenever he was near. He left the scene confused and uncomfortable; not sure what to make of his enemy handing him such vital information. Red Blade just gave him some real dirt on the Galra, and he didn’t know what to do with it. He doesn’t know what to do about the cameras, or the fact that The Blade had been willing to help him here.

“Im going to get this to Allura” Shiro mumbles to himself, tucking the laptop safely underarm before heading back to The Castle of Lions, which is the closest thing Shiro has to a home. His home used to be somewhere else…with _someone_ else. Someone warm and quiet. The Castle is large, cold, and primarily empty, but it’s practically all he has now. Three years ago, Shiro lost everything he knew to The Galra. Now all he had was The Castle, and the other three who take refuge in its walls.

The Castle of Lions used to be a massive school for people with the mutated quintessence gene, people like Shiro. It was held in high regard and loved by most of the city, but ever since The Galra started to rise in power, people began to fear mutants, and the school got put under harsh ridicule until it was all but abandoned. That was a long time ago, now its habited by Allura Altea, whose father established The Castle, and inherited it when he passed away. She’s accompanied by her Uncle Coran. Together the two have been desperately trying to piece together The Castle of Lions, and polish it back to its former glory. They havent been a complete success, but with the addition of Shiro actively acting as the city’s new favorite hero: Lion Shadow, they have been receiving less and less criticism.

Shiro doesn’t mind. He’s happy to help The Castle. Allura and Coran took Shiro in off the street; they helped heal him, they fed him, they clothed him, they taught him and they loved him. They’re his family now, and he’s willing to help them in any way he can. Acting out against The Galra is a nice side benefit too. He desperately wants revenge on The Galra. Sure, on one hand they gave Shiro his new powers, the powers that allow him to be the Hero he’s always wanted to be. On the other hand, well, they took the other hand. The Galra stole his right arm, all the way up to the middle of his bicep, and replaced it with a metal prosthetic. They also tortured him, and held him Prisoner. They took Shiro away from the life he knew, from his family, that was the part that was really unforgivable. Robbing him of the life he would have had is the part that hurts the most.

“Shiro! You’re back already?” Allura greets him once he returns, and makes his way to communication center of The Castle. He nods, and places the laptop down on the table in front of her, before removing his helmet.

“Red Blade found another Galra drone. This one was putting up cameras around the city. They’ve got several different angles on The Castle” Shiro starts to explain, setting his helmet down so he can open up the laptop and show her the same page Red Blade had shown him. Her crystal blue eyes go wide and she runs one of her dark hands through her long, wavy white hair. Most people with the quintessence gene just look like completely normal, and you’d never be able to tell. Then there are some people whose physical appearance is clearly altered. Allura and her family are clearly among those. They are still very human like, but there’s a couple small details that set them apart. On the upper part of her cheekbones, there is a small, J shaped section that juts out a bit and is a light pink color, like a blush. Her ears were also a bit pointed. Hair that’s naturally the color of freshly fallen snow is also a huge giveaway, but it’s a very common side effect of quintessence. Even Shiro had a small tuft of his forelock turn white after his time with The Galra.

“They’re planning something” She whispers, and Shiro nods in agreement. The Galra are always planning something, but they are never this obvious. They tend to do everything underground, and in their own ranks, and you never know what they’re going to do until its already done. This however, is the third Galra drone they’ve found this week scouting out the city. The first two were making maps of the city, now this one was setting up cameras. That’s not sounding so good.

“How did you get this from RedBlade?” Allura asks, suddenly standing up, and slamming the laptop shut.

“He just gave it to me. When I questioned him, he showed me what was on the screen, and I told him I couldn’t let him take it. He seemed annoyed by that, but he downloaded the file onto a flash drive, and gave me the computer anyway, before bolting for it”

“He just gave it to you?” She hummed in thought for a second “Do you think it’s a trap? The Blade of Marmora could be working with The Galra?”  She questions, but Shiro shakes his head.

“I don’t think so. He hesitated. I think he was supposed to take the evidence back to The Blade, but knew I needed it too. So he settled for a copy, and gave me the original”

“And the Drone? What did he do to him?”

“He gave him the usual; A red envelope, and sent him running. My guess is that he gave him a way out of town” See the Red Blade is the only member of The Blade of Marmora who acts openly and in public. The rest of The Blades tend to work in secrecy, and away from where the media can catch them. He doesn’t seem to care much about being spotted, in fact, he even leaves a calling card at every sight.  He signs every crime with a little something red. In most cases it is a red envelope, but it doesn’t have to be. As long as it’s red, they know it’s his. That’s why they call him The Red Blade.

“He didn’t hurt him?”

“No, scared the crap out of him, sure, but didn’t hurt him” Allura pauses in thought again, and glances down at the laptop, glaring intensely at it.

“The Galra are clearly planning something, which means we should be ready for anything” She starts to pace across the control room, her long blue dress dragging against the pale marble floors.

“Agreed, we have to be ready for whatever they throw our way”

“I am afraid we shouldn’t rely on you alone for this Shiro”

“Allura, what do you mean?”

“I mean we should think about reforming Voltron”

“Voltron?” Shiro had heard stories about Voltron. Everyone in Galaxy had. It was an old legend people used to tell their kids. Many years ago, Voltron was a group of five mutants; the smartest, strongest and most skilled from The Castle of Lions. Each was an extraordinary super-hero on their own, and were often called Paladins or Knights. The team as a whole was called Voltron. The Defender of Galaxy City. Alluras father, Alfor, was the founder and the original Red Paladin of Voltron. Voltron disappeared the same time The Galra sarted to rise, that’s why a lot of people blame The Castle of Lions.

“Yes. If we want to be ready for anything, then we must reform Voltron. Voltron is the only thing that can keep this City safe”

“Okay, but how do you reform Voltron?”

“That’s easy. We just have to the find the other paladins” She makes her way to the center of the room, and pulls up her computer system, projecting the screen up into the air.

“The others?”  
“Well, yes. You of course would be a part of Voltron. You will be The Black Paladin; The Leader” Shiros heart pounds in his chest. Him? The leader of Voltron? He knows he’s considered a Hero, but he doesn’t know if he’s really ready to be the head of a team that’s supposed to be Galaxy cities greatest savior. That’s a lot of pressure.

“Okay… Okay, then how do you find the others? There’s supposed to be five in total right? Are you going to-“ Shiro quickly accepts his fate. He’s still not sure he’s ready, but he knows he doesn’t really have a choice. So he agrees, and moves on. He’s half way through a suggestion when Allura cuts him off.

“No, I unfortunately am not meant to be one of Voltrons Knights, but I spent my entire life training with my father” She hums, typing away on her computer. Shiro doesn’t get why she thinks she can’t be a Hero. Allura does have the quintessence gene, and she does have strong abilities that could be really useful in the field, and yet she always refuses to actually go out.

“I know the rolls of every Paladin inside and out. On here, I have every file on every registered mutant in Galaxy City. If I sift through them, I know I can find candidates for Voltron” She pulls up one file, and opens it to reveal dozens of other files. At Birth, people are now naturally tested for the Quintessence gene so that they can be registered as a mutant. This has proved to be more bad then good. In fact, the only good it’s doing now is helping Allura find future members of Voltron.

“Actually, Shiro, I already have an idea for one Paladin…” She hesitates, exiting out of the file, and pulling up another. Shiros eyes narrow as the File he made for Red Blade pops up on the screen. It’s a file that’s practically empty. It has a single, candid shot of the vigilante, and a report of every crime he’s known to commit, along with anything else they know about him, which isn’t much.

“You can’t be serious. Allura, he’s an enemy!”

“Is he? He knew it was right to give you the computer. He’s never hurt or killed a single drone. He’s never tried to hurt you. He’s obviously very skilled, and obviously working against the Galra. I can sense it, Shiro. He could be a valuable member of Voltron” She argues, standing up, but Shiro shakes his head.

“He’s still a criminal. Look into the registered mutant. I am going to get some rest, I have to take Ryou to Parent-Teacher night today” Shiro dismisses himself from the command center, and retreats back to his room. He double checks the little bedroom that’s connecting to his, just to make sure his nephew made it to school, before crashing into his bed.

 

* * *

 

 

Shiro grew up with a really small family. Just his mother, his brother, and himself. He and his brother weren’t exactly close. They grew up separately, went to different schools, had different goals in life. After he started high school they only talked maybe once a year. Shiro’s mother died his senior year, and even before then she was always busy with work. Shiro’s only real family was his best friend; Keith. Keith was a couple of years younger than Shiro, sure, but that didn’t stop them. Keith was really mature for his age, a lot more mature then most of the people in Shiro’s age group. They met in middle school when Shiro was in 8th grade, and Keith was in 6th. They met in the most unexpected way.

See Keith had all ways been a hot-headed, impulse based kid. So naturally, he got in a lot of fights. On that fateful day, Keith had gotten into a fight with someone in Shiros grade, so Shiro stepped in to break it up, and that resulted in Keith kicking both the other guys ass, and Shiro’s ass. Now that was really embarrassing. To get your ass handed to you by someone two grades below you, but it was extra embarrassing because everyone at that school new Shiro was in multiple martial arts classes. He got teased for a while after that, but he didn’t mind. He actually thought it was hilarious. When Keith came up to him a week later to give the mandatory, school policy, apology, all Shiro wanted to do was ask him to teach him a move. Little Keith, shocked and a bit confused, agreed.

They were inseparable from that moment on.

When Shiro moved up into Highschool, and Keith being stuck alone in 7th grade was apparently very frustrating, because next thing he knew Keith was doing extra work and taking tests so that he could skip a grade and join his friend in Highschool. Shiro wasn’t surprised when it worked. He knew Keith was smart, a lot smarted then most people gave him credit for, and he’s also very determined. If he wanted something, he was going to get it.

Once in Highschool, they became even closer, which no one thought was possible. Shiro made a couple friends here and there, but Keith never let anyone else in. Keith stuck to Shiros side like he was super glued there, and Shiro never once complained. They walked to their classes together, they spent break and lunch together, they walked to and from school together, they studied after school together, and they had sleepovers almost every weekend. His senior year is when things started getting complicated.

Keith started to sneak over to his house on weekdays, and they started talking about their future and what they wanted out of life and one-day Shiro decided that he couldn’t possibly imagine a life without Keith. He started appreciating Keith’s smile more and he started noticing how attractive and fit he was, and he started trying to make him laugh at every chance he got and then all at once he realized that he was ridiculously in love with his best friend.

He never told him though. Never said a word about it. He was too afraid to ruin the friendship they had. He was so afraid of losing Keith that anytime he thought about confessing he would choke up and wuss out. Now he wishes he had just done it. He was going to tell Keith when he left for his first year of college. He was going to take that chance and just kiss him, but he got scared and dipped out last minute. Now he’ll probably never get that chance. The very next day Shiro was kidnapped by The Galra, and when he was freed, he searched everywhere, but he couldn’t find Keith. His friend had practically fallen off the face of the earth.

About a year ago, Shiro got a devastating call. His brother and his sister-in-law had died in a car crash. He rushed to the hospital immediately. Once he got there, he was informed that his brother had a six-year-old son. Evidently, Shiro was the kids only living relative, and naturally was the first option to take him in.  Shiro didn’t even know his brother was married, let alone had a kid, but he took one look at his nephew and agreed to take him in without hesitation. Now Ryou lived in The Castle of Lions with him. It’s not exactly easy taking care of a first grader, and he never really expected to be raising a kid, especially at his age, but he loves it. He loves his nephew. He has a lot of help too, both Allura and her Uncle Coran help out with Ryou.

Shiro likes to think that if he hadn’t been taken by The Galra, if it went differently, maybe he would be with Keith now. Maybe he could have finally confessed and maybe his friend would accept his feelings and maybe they could have lived together in a nice house, and been a nice couple. Maybe Keith could have helped him raise Ryou. It was a nice thought. One Shiro had a lot.

 

“Takashi!” Shiros eyes snap open when something heavy drops onto his stomach. “Uncle Takashi get up! We promised to take me to back to school night!” Ryou bounces on his stomach, and Shiro groans.

“Alright. Okay. Im up!” He laughs, and Ryou finally ceases his bouncing.  
“What time is it, Ryou?” Ryou slides off him to go look at the alarm clock on the bedside table.

“5:017?” He reads, and Shiro bolts up right.

“Oh no, We’re gonna be late. Okay, buddy go get ready. I gotta take a shower” Shiro curses at himself internally for sleeping so long. He knows it’s been a while since he’s gotten a full night sleep, but he honestly didn’t think he would sleep for so long. He ushers Ryou into his room, and rushes down the hall to the bathroom to take a quick rinse. By the time he’s out, gets dressed, brushes his hair and teeth it’s already 5:45.

“Ryou, buddy are you ready?” He pushes open the bedroom door to find Ryou standing there in his pajamas.

“Buddy, what are you doing? We have to go?”

“But I don’t wanna go” Ryou crosses his arms, and Shiro sighs

“I thought you wanted me to meet your teacher?”

“Mr.K?”

“Yeah, Mr.K. Don’t you want me to meet him? I thought you liked him.”

“I do…”

“Then let’s go meet him” Shiro encourages. Ryou pauses for a second, still unsure. He still doesn’t understand how Ryou could be so excited for something one minute, and then completely against it the next.

“I dunno”

“What if we get Pizza on the way home?” Ryou stares at him like his offering is some kind of trap

“Would you rather eat Uncle Corans food for dinner?” Shiro warns, and Ryous eyes go wide. It’s not that Coran is a terrible cook, but, if it can be avoided, no one will complain.

“If we go now and meet your teacher we can get Pizza for dinner” Shiro repeats when Ryou still doesn’t say anything. The 7 year old looks like he’s doing some advanced math in his head. Then a little smile pulls up on his lips, and Shiro knows he’s figured something out.

“Can we get Ice cream too?” Shiro doesn’t usually let Ryou eat too much junk food, especially not sweets like ice cream. Every now and then sure, but not often. Which means Ryou will constantly look for ways to get it.

  
“Deal. Let’s get you dressed” Shiro quickly caves into the kid, mentally cursing him for being so smart, and starts to pull him out some clothes. By the time they get Ryou redressed, and in the car it’s almost 6 o clock. Ryou’s elementary school is on the other side of town, it takes about 20 to 25 minutes to get there, but it’s one of the closer ones to The Castle of Lions, and it’s the best elementary school in the City. Knowing Ryou is getting a chance at the best education possible is worth the extra couple minute commute. They get there as soon as possible, without Shiro speeding because he won’t risk that with his nephew in the car. Its about 6:19 when they park.

 

 

 

“Alright, buddy, lead me to your class” He gets out of the car, and helps Ryou. His nephew grabs onto his hand, and starts pulling him through the school, all the way across the campus from where they parked. Coran and Allura usually took Ryou to and from school, So Shiro actually had no idea where his class was, or what his teacher was like.

“It’s this one!” Ryou leads him up a ramp, and to the door of his classroom, and they rush in.

“I am so sorry, I know I am late but I-“ Shiro instantly starts apologizing when he steps inside and see’s Ryous teacher starting to pack his bag. Then his heart drops, and the whole world seems to stop spinning because the man looks up and Shiro knows that face. Those eyes. He’s looking into those brilliant brown eyes thousands of times. He’d know those eyes anywhere.

 'Keith?” He can’t help the stuttered whisper that escapes him. He wants to rub his eyes and double check that he’s not seeing things. He wants to scream. Wants to run. Wants to cry. He wants to do _something_. But he just can’t seem to move. He just stands there. Staring. Trying to wrap his mind around the sight in front of him.

Shiro has been looking for Keith for years. He’s searched every inch of the city, he’s sure of it. He looked through every database, asked every person he could possibly think of, but all he ever got was ‘he moved’. He’s spent countless hours stressing and missing his best friend. Eventually he thought he’d never see Keith again, and when Ryou came along he slowly stopped looking. Of course, Keith was in the one place he would have never thought to look. Shiro was always too busy or too tired to take Ryou to school or pick him up, and he never bothered to pay attention to the name on Ryous school work, and what he did see just said Mr. K. To think they could have been reunited months ago if he had just payed more attention to Ryous school stuff. He wants to beat himself over the head with a stick.

 “Takashi?” The first word out of Keiths mouth makes him break. Everything else in the world disappears, everything around them turns blank, and all he sees is Keith on the other side of the room. Looking as handsome as the last time he saw him; with his hair, naturally a bit disheveled and in a tight ponytail, warm brown eyes wide with shock, soft pink lips slightly parted in a gasp. He’s wearing black jeans and an adorable dark red sweater that’s a size too big for him and the same cherry red doc martins he wore in high school.  He looked a bit older, the bags under his eyes were a bit harsher. He looked more mature, but that wasn’t necessarily a bad thing. More importantly, he looked like Keith. He hadn’t changed. That made his heart pound.

Without thinking about it, he dropped Ryous hand, and crossed the room as quickly as possible, and scooped Keith up in a tight hug.

“Oh!” Keith gasped, and hesitated for a second before returning the gesture. “Takashi…” He snaked both his arms around Shiro and squeezed, before burying his face in Shiro’s shoulder. They stayed like that for what seemed like forever, and truthfully, Shiro never wanted to let go. The feeling of Keith in his arms again, and that same sweet scent of cinnamon and fire wood and hearing him whisper his name like a prayer was all so over whelming. He’s not afraid or ashamed to admit it; He lets out a couple tears. Admittedly he has cried a couple times over the last few years, when he thinks a little too much, or get’s too frustrated with his past. He can’t be strong all the time, so every now and then, it does creep up on him. Right now? He couldn’t even try to be strong if he wanted to. He has Keith. He has Keith again, and that’s all he cares about.

“I looked everywhere for you” He whispers to Keith, and Keith just nods his head in Shiros shoulder, pulling him a bit closer.

“I thought you were dead” Keith whispers back, and a spike of ice shoots up his spine. Oh god. That’s right. They couldn’t find Keith, which meant no one could have informed Keith that he was alright, and it’s not like Shiro is out in the eyes of the media or public. Oh god… Poor Keith… All these years?

“I am so, so sorry. I looked for you everywhere, and everyone just kept telling me you moved but no one could tell me where and I am so so-“Shiro pulls away from Keith a bit to look him in the eyes, resting his hands on Keiths shoulders to keep him in close distance. He isn’t ready to be away yet. He’s spent enough time away.

“It’s okay. It’s okay. You’re here. You… Why are you here?” Keith cuts him off, a wide smile on his face, but he suddenly stops as he realizes something, and glances behind Shiro at the young Ryou, who is standing directly behind them, looking hopelessly confused.

“Oh! Oh, Ryous my Nephew”

“I figured he was your brothers son, from the name… but uh, why are you here with him?”

“oh, uh, Ryou lost his parents last year, so I took him in”     

“Im so sorry, I didn’t know”

“Uncle Takashi, can we go get Pizza now?” Ryou reaches up on Shiros shirt. He still looks really confused, but it seems he’s decided he doesn’t care.

“Yeah, Yeah sure buddy, give me a minute, okay?” Shiro asks. He knows what he promised, and he knows Ryou is probably really hungry since it’s past his usual dinner time. Shiro’s probably really hungry too, but he can’t seem to feel anything but excitement and relief at the moment. Ryou pouts, and tugs on Shiros shirt again.

“But Im hungry” he pauses, and then looks between Shiro, and his teacher, and gets that look again where he seems to have figured out the secrets to the universe.

“What if Mr. K comes with us? Then can we go now?” He bargains. How he ended up with such a deviously smart seven-year-old, he has no clue, but at the moment, he’s praising him. That’s actually a good idea. Shiro is nowhere near ready to leave Keith again. He’s missed him for years, a couple minutes together after all that time definitely is not enough.

“That’s a great idea, buddy!” He ruffles Ryou’s hair, and turns to look at Keith with desperate, pleading eyes. He can only hope Keith missed him as much as he missed Keith.

“What do you say, Mr. K? Are you in the mood for pizza?” Keith glances down at Ryou, before locking eyes with Shiro, and giving a small, delicate smile.

“How could I possibly say no?” Shiro squeezes his shoulder, and Keiths smile grows a bit.

“You know what, My apartment is only a block from here. If we call and order now, we won’t have to wait nearly as long?” He offers, and the little spark in his eyes wipes away all Shiros worries. Keith doesn’t want to leave Shiro either. He doesn’t want to separate yet, he’s giving easy excuses for them to spend more time together. Inviting them to his home instead of out to eat somewhere just insures more time, as well as more privacy and intimacy. Which is exactly what he wants as well.

“That sounds great, what do you think Ryou?”

“Do you have Ice-cream?”

“I have chocolate ice-cream?”

“Then we can go!” Ryou approved of the plan, and Shiro orders the two large pizzas while Keith packs up the rest of his stuff, and then locks up the classroom. Shiro leads both him and Ryou back to the car, and then Keith directs him to his apartment.

“I can drive you back later to pick up your car?” Once there, Shiro realizes that Keith might have left his car at the school.

“No car, I walk to work” Keith shakes his head, leading the pair up to his apartment.

“Isn’t that kind of dangerous?”

“I think I can take care of myself, Shiro”

“I know, Trust me, I know, but that doesn’t mean it’s not dangerous” He chuckles. Keith has kicked his ass in sparring matches more times then he can count. He knows Keith can defend himself, but that doesn’t make him worry any less. The worlds a dangerous place, especially with The Galra out there.

“Whatever, Worry-wart. He we go; home sweet home” He sighs as he slips his key into the door, and unlocks his apartment. He props the door open for Shiro and Ryou to enter, and flips on the light. It’s a decent sized apartment. Very simple. A small kitchen area with a fridge, a microwave, a stove and oven, a sink, and a bit of counter space. A plain looking living room with an old brown three-person couch, a wooden coffee table and a small tv on a wooden chest.  There’s a couple blankets and pillows thrown onto the couch, but not much else in the room. There’s a small hallway leading to what looks Shiro guesses is a bathroom and a guest room. On the other side of the room is an entrance way to what looks like the master bedroom.

“It’s not much, but it’s affordable and comfy. It’s usually just me, so I don’t really need much space….” Keith mumbles, dropping his bag off on the kitchen counter.  _It’s usually just me_.  Shiro likes the sound of that. That means Keith is potentially still single. That’s good. He wouldn’t know what to do if he finally found Keith again just to find out he’s taken. Of course, he’d still be happy just to have his friend back, and he’d support him, but that’d be one hell of a heart break.

“It’s nice. Quiet, simple, warm”

“Just the way I like it” Keith agrees. “Do you wanna watch a movie, Ryou?” He heads over to the couch, where Ryou has already made himself comfortable. Shiro of course joins him, and helps them find a movie to watch.

Before he knows it the Pizza is there, and all three of them are curled up on the couch together, eating and enjoying a movie. Ryou decided he wanted to sit in-between the two of them, unfortunately, but he wasn’t going to argue with his nephew. He couldn’t stop glancing at Keith during the movie. Admiring him. He wanted to reach out to him so badly, but he was just out of comfortable reach. However, it was nice how natural it felt. It felt like the old days, when Keith would sneak over to have a sleepover with him. For a while there, it felt like they had never been separated. Like it was a completely normal, consistent thing between them, and not like they had just been reunited after being apart for years.

 

Next thing he knows, Ryou is dead asleep, and Shiro is carrying him to the guest room. Keith helps tuck him in, and then truns off the light. When they gently shut the door, and step back out into the hallway, the entire mood shifts, as they both realize they’re finally alone.

“Are you sure it’s okay for us to spend the night?” He asks, wanting to make sure he isn’t imposing. For the first time that night, he feels a bit awkward. Unsure of himself, and what to do.

“Im sure. It’s fine, really"

“Alright. I guess I’ll sleep on the couch”

“Oh…Oh, Okay. Uh… Do you want something to sleep in? I uh.. I have some of your old clothes…” Keiths eyes go wide suddenly, and he rubs the back of his neck, a deep blush spreading across his nose and cheeks.

“Sorry, I know that’s probably kind of weird. I found some of your clothes in my stuff the first time I moved and I couldn’t bear to throw them away, so I kept them”

“I don’t think it’s weird. Id really appreciate that, thanks” if he didn’t know any better, Shiro would think someone pumped his stomach filled with butterflies as he watches Keith babble out an explanation. He actually kept his stuff? After all this time? Thinking Shiro was gone? And he still held on to his stuff? That certainly boosted his ego a bit.

“I’ll see what I can find” He vanishes into his bedroom, giving Shiro time to sit down on the couch, and shoot a quick text to Allura to let her know they wouldn’t be coming home tonight. If he didn’t do it now, he’d wake up tomorrow with 30 missed calls and texts and a claim of him being a missing persons.

“I found some sweats and a t-shirt. Is that alright?”

“It’s perfect. Thank you”

“You’re welcome. Well, I-Uh, the bathroom is down the hall, across from the guest room…” Again, Keith rubs the back of his neck, and he sways a bit on his feet after he hands Shiro a pile of folded clothes.

“So… G-good night” In the flash of a moment, Keith leans up, and presses a quick kiss to his cheek before retreating to his bedroom, and shutting the door. Shiro stands there like an idiot for a few minutes, in complete and utter shock, cherishing the lingering warmth that Keiths lips left on his skin.

 

 

Eventually Shiro does make his way to the bathroom to change. He’s surprised the clothes still fit him. They’re not a perfect fit, granted, but they fit none the less.  He’s still got huge, goofy grin on his face when he returns to the living room. He sets his clothes from the day on the floor by his shoes, and shuts off the living room light. He lays down on the couch, and crosses his arms behind his head. He stares up at the ceiling for a minute, before slowly shutting his eyes. All he can think about, all he sees in his mind is Keith. His smile, his laugh, and how much he’d missed him. How normal it felt to finally be with him again, how they fit back together seamlessly. How happy and lucky he is to finally have Keith back. He’s here. He can’t wait to catch up with him, talk to him, spend time alone with him… He hasn’t actually had a real moment alone with Keith, now that he thinks about it. Just that little moment after they tucked Ryou in…

_He’s right there. Just a couple feet away in the next room. You’ve been going crazy thinking about him for years and now he’s so close. What are you waiting for? Whats the worst thing that could happen?_

He starts to lecture himself, starts to weight the pros and cons in his head. If he puts himself out there, Keith could reject him, and that could put a damper on rebuilding their friendship. However, Keith could accept his feelings, and return them, and they could start making steps to have the relationship he’s always dreamed of. Based off the last couple hours, he’d say the later has a decent chance. When he decides that it’s worth the risk, he pushes himself off the couch, and walks over to the master bedroom to gently knock on the door.

“Come in?” Keiths voice answers, a bit unsure. Shiro takes in a deep breath, and releases it before slowly opening up the door. He doesn’t quite know why he freezes up, Shiros seen this sight thousands of times; Keith sitting up in bed, back against the head rest, no shirt on, the blanket covering his lower half and a book in his lap.

“You okay, Shiro?” Keith shuts his book, and he feels himself start to wind up again.

“Yeah, yeah sorry… uh” He clears his throat, and averts his eyes, rubbing the back of his next to ease some of his tension.

“Do you.. Do you uh, remember when we were kids, and we would have a sleep over every weekend? And then, then when my senior year you said I was too busy to hang out during the day, so you’d just have to start spending time with me at night, even if we were both asleep?” Shiro starts blabbing on about the first thing that pops into his mind.

“Yeah, I remember. I started sneaking over to your house every day just to spend the night with you” Keith laughs, the fond smile on his lips does reach his eyes. Shiro’s heart thuds against his chest.

“And eventually you started complaining saying that you were doing all the work for our friendship”

“Shiro, your bedroom was on the second floor. I scaled the side of your house every night and crawled through the window. Damn right I was doing all the work” Shiro laughed, his face heating up a bit.

“You said that one day I would have to sneak into your room, because you were getting really tired of the climb. Well, I know I am kind of late, and I know this isn’t exactly sneaking but uh, here I am?” He gives an awkward chuckle as he watches Keiths face turn bright red.

“Shiro?” He clears his throat.

“Yeah?”

“Just get in the bed” He turns his head so he doesn’t have to look Shiro in the eye, but he can still see the smile that tugs at Keiths lips. Shiro feels giddy. Like a little kid on Christmas morning. That was a really good step. A nice start to what he’s hoping for. He gently shuts the door, and makes his way to the right side of the bed, the side Keith has mainly left empty, and crawls in, lying flat on his back. Keith places his book on his nightstand, and turns off little lamp to leave them alone in the dark, before laying down on his side, facing away from Shiro.

“You know, we never discussed Ryous school stuff” There’s a soft huff that comes from Keith. Shiro tries to hide his disappointment in Keiths closed off position with a light chuckle.

“For some reason, I am not too concerned about it” Usually, Shiro actually would be concerned. He wants the absolute best for his nephew, but he also trusts Keith. Shiro has never know Keith to halfass something. If he’s doing what he wants to do, then he’s going to put his all into it.

“You’re not going to ask me a bunch of stupid questions?”

“I don’t know, what classifies as a stupid question?” Shiro jokes, and he hears Keith snort.

“Any question that doesn’t have to do with your kids education. Like ‘Isnt teaching a women’s job?’, any jabs at my sexuality, or asking me if I am single”

“Parents actually ask that?” He can’t help but laugh

“Oh yeah”

“Wow… Well, are you?” There’s silence for a minute. Only the light sound of them both breathing steadily keeps him company as he stares up at the ceiling.

“Am I what?” Keiths voice is lower, quieter.

“Single? Are you single?”

“I am”

“Good to know” He whispers back. Then it’s silent again. He feels like he might have crossed a line, until Keith clears his throat a bit.

 

“It’s kind of cold in here…” Keith mumbles.

“Do you want me to get another blanket? You had extras in the living room” Shiro’s ready to get up, and find another blanket when Keith groans, and rolls over onto his back.

“Shiro” He complains, briefly, reaching over, and grabbing Shiros left arm. He rolls back onto his side, and yanks Shiro with him.

“Oh” Shiro chokes out in embarrassment as he awkwardly settles into the spooning position Keith pulled him to. He pulls his prosthetic arm up more, so it’s not trapped beneath him, meanwhile, Keith laces his hand with Shiros left hand, and holds it close to his chest. It takes a couple seconds, but eventually Shiro relaxes into the position, and once his heart finally settles, he takes a deep breath, and buries his head into Keiths hair.

 

“It’s good to have you back” Keith whispers, pulling their hands up to lightly kiss Shiros knukles.

“It’s good to be back” Shiro returns the favor by pressing a soft kiss to the back of Keiths head.

 

Shiro falls asleep that night knowing that no dream his mind creates could possibly compare to his current reality.

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Damn this chapter was long. And hard to write. I had the ending planned forever, but I kept switching stuff up and editing and changing stuff and ugh. Anyway, hope you guys liked it, please let me know what you think!


	3. Too Soon

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> “It’s alright, go. Hopefully the sooner you get there and take care of whatever it is you need to deal with, the sooner you can come back to me"

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry that it's been so long, I've been without internet for the last couple weeks. I hope you like this chapter, please let me know what you think!

Despite being used to it, right now, there is literally nothing worse Keith can think of then waking up to an empty bed. The second he opened his eyes and realized Shiro was no longer next to him, he froze up. He didn’t know if he should cry, run after him, hit something, scream, or do anything. Everything sort of crashed down on him at once. Years of complicated and conflicting emotions all just came tumbling at him like an emotional rock slide. The day of Shiro’s disappearance flashes through his mind. The pure and utter pain he had felt that day when Shiro’s picture spread across the newswas the worst thing he had ever felt. He didn’t leave his room for weeks. He didn’t talk to anyone. He barely ate. Barely slept. Barely moved. All he did for weeks is either cry, lie in silence as he thought about Shiro, and think about their time together, and all the things that could have been. The possibilities, their future, their past; it all kept Keith up at night.

Then he joined The Blade of Marmora. He thought they were his best chance at finding Shiro. His training was rough and constant, but the physical pain he had to endure was nothing compared to that pang in his heart every time he thought about his best friend.

The Blade told him his quest to find Shiro was practically useless. They told him that it was not an easy feat to escape The Galra, and that those who did were not the same afterwards. In the end, they were right. Ulaz-one of the Blades who had taken Keith in when he was younger-found Shiro during one of his undercover missions and freed him, and gave Keith the location. When Keith found him, Shiro was hardly conscious, riddled with scars, and he looked so much different then how he remembered, and yet, completely the same. It wasn’t the looks that got Keith. He didn’t so much mind the scars, or the white forelock of hair. Hell,The missing arm didn’t bother him either. Well, it bothered him in the sense that he hated (and still hates) what Shiro had to go through.  What got to Keith that day, what scared him, and made him run for it, was the way Shiro looked at Keith.

It was evident that Shiro not only didn’t recognize Keith, but was also afraid of him. The pain that struck Keith was awful. It was like losing him a second time, and he didn’t know what to do. Keith panicked. He didn’t want to bring him to The Blade of Marmora. He just didn’t. He couldn’t. A normal hospital wouldn’t know what to do, and they couldn’t help him properly. There was only one place that Keith knew of that had a proper history in helping people like this: The Castle of Lions.

For months after leaving Shiro there, all Keith felt was guilt and regret. Perhaps he should have stayed with Shiro, should have helped him more, but every bone and his body just told him something was wrong. Then one day, news of some new _super-hero_ started spreading all across the city. He heard countless stories of the mysterious “Lion Shadow”, who dove head first into danger and ‘humbly’ greeted his fans, before flaunting his strength for the cameras. He was arrogant, cocky, and he completely shattered Keith’s world the first time they crossed paths because it was Shiro. The second he saw him in person, Keith knew. He would know Shiro anywhere, and the man behind the glistening armor and helmet and the bold words was Shiro. But it wasn’t his Shiro. The Shiro Keith knew would never act like that. Keith’s Shiro actually was humble and polite. He was calm and rational. He kept his playful side to a select few, and he was more self-conscious than he was boastful or cocky.

The Blade of Marmora was right. People did not come back from the Galra the same as when they left. That was not Shiro. The man who paraded around as LionShadow was not his Shiro. _His_ Shiro was lost. Dead. He had to remind himself of that every single time he faced the Hero. Not my Shiro. It’s not Shiro.

Now Keith knows it is. _His_ Shiro is still there. The same old, awkward but sweet and caring Shiro is still in there. Last night was proof. He had _his_ Shiro back. Now Keith doesn’t know what to do. He doesn’t know what to think or to feel. He should be happy. Ecstatic, really. But he knows it’s not so easy. Nothing is ever so easy, especially not in his life.

For a minute, he just lays in his bed, staring up at the dark ceiling, heart pounding in his chest, and painfully aware of the empty space beside him.

“Goddammit” He groans, giving in and pushing the blankets off him so he can roll out of bed. He’ll figure it out later. All the complicated emotions can wait. Right now, he misses Shiro, and that’s all he’s going to focus on. That, and why the fuck he isn’t currently being cuddled.

“I know, I know… I’m on my way right now, let me just-“Keith finds Shiro in his kitchen, fully dressed, one hand holding a cellphone to his ear, and the other hand failing to stir some eggs in a pan. Shiro instantly notices Keith approaching the room. He ends his conversation, and tosses his phone in his pocket.

“Im sorry, did I wake you?” Shiro asks. Keith joins him by the stove and crosses his arms over his bare chest. Now that he thinks about it, he probably should have put something on so he wasn’t wondering around in his boxers, but you know what? This is his apartment, and he’ll walk around in his underwear if he wants. Not like Shiro hasn’t seen it before. Apparently, no one told Shiro that though, because his eyes are glued to Keith’s shoulders, and his face is quickly growing red.

“You not being in bed is what woke me up”

“Oh…Oh Im sorry, Keith… I got a call and I didn’t want to wake you up… I have to go soon. It’s really important, otherwise I wouldn’t dream of leaving right now. I probably wouldn’t leave your side for the next month if it was up to me, but I have some stuff I have to take care of and-“ Shiro starts to ramble out excuses. Keith, despite the spark of disappointment that travels through his body, gives a soft chuckle, and places a hand on Shiro’s chest.

“It’s alright, I understand. Go take care of your stuff. I didn’t expect you to drop your entire life just to catch up with me” Keith waves it off like it isn’t so important to him. He doesn’t want to be separated so soon, but he knows it’s most likely some LionShadow thing, and if that’s true, then he’ll probably be getting a call from The Blade any minute now, and he doesn’t want Shiro here for that. Shiro just frowns at him though, as if he doesn’t like Keith’s answer.

“You are my life” the second the words leave Shiro’s mouth, both their eyes go wide. Shiro chokes, and Keith makes a small, squawking sound in shock.  

“I mean… I meant... You were such a big part of my life before. And… You know... I uh... I uh... I missed you, and I wouldn’t mind dropping everything to be with you-To spend time with you… To, you know, to catch up…”  
 Shiro chokes on his own words as he scrambles out an explanation.

“Yeah… It’s okay Shiro. Go take care of your stuff. We can catch up later” Keith insist again, because he honestly just doesn’t know what else to say to Shiro’s declaration.

“Are you sure?”

“I’m sure”  
“Okay… I uh, I actually have a favor to ask of you?”

“Of course?” Keith isn’t sure what kind of favor Shiro could possibly need, but if it’s for Shiro, he’s willing.

“Can you watch Ryou for a couple hours? I know that’s a lot to ask but I don’t think I should take him home with me right now…”

Holy crap, Ryou. Keith nearly forgot that Shiro had his nephew with him. Oh gosh.

“Sure” Keith hesitates, but agrees. He doesn’t want to say ‘ _no’_ to Shiro. Especially not for something like that. If The Blade does need him, he’ll figure something out.

“Really?”

“Sure; I’m his teacher, I’m used to watching him most of the day” Keith shrugs it off, and Shiro smiles. That soft, brilliant Shiro smile that makes Keith weak in the knees.

“Thanks, Keith. I owe you one. I promise when I come back and take him home, we can go out somewhere and talk, just us”

“I’d like that” He agrees.

 “Oh, yeah. I uh... I hope you don’t mind, but I helped myself to the fridge to make you breakfast” Shiro hesitates to pull his eyes away, scanning Keith once over before turning his attention back to the scrambled eggs in the pan.

“But I am not the best at it” He begrudgingly admits, and Keith can’t help but laugh. It’s good to know that Shiro still can’t cook to save his life. He burns or undercooks everything, he never properly seasons anything, and everything is always just… Well… They usually went out to eat, or let Keith do the cooking for a reason.

“It’s the thought that counts” Keith won’t lie, there is a bit of a blush on his own cheeks. He’s well aware of Shiro’s gaze on his half naked body, and he’s well aware of the awkward but romantic gesture Shiro is trying to produce with breakfast.

Shiro’s phone buzzes in his pocket again before he can talk. “I’m sorry, I gotta go. Ryou probably won’t be up for another hour or two. I should be back by this afternoon, again I’m so sorry… I wish I didn’t have to go” Shiro double checks to make sure the stove is off, and then pulls Keith into a quick hug. Too quick for Keith’s taste. Keith would prefer to spend the entire rest of the day wrapped up in his friend’s arms, but he knows it doesn’t work like that.

“It’s alright, go. Hopefully the sooner you get there and take care of whatever it is you need to deal with, the sooner you can come back to me” He ignores how romantic that sounds, and what it implies as he pats Shiro’s shoulder.

Then, once again, Shiro is gone, and Keith is left painfully alone.

 

 

 

 

* * *

 

 

 

 

 

“Allura. This better be important” Shiro isn’t too happy about being back at The Castle of Lions so soon. He is nowhere near ready to separate from Keith.

“Well, you’re in a particular mood” Shiro is greeted by Coran in the command center. Allura’s ‘uncle’, a very close family friend who’s been taking care of her, and The Castle, since her father passed away.

“I am. I found Keith yesterday” Shiro replies. Allura, sitting in front of her computer-like always-perks her head up, and Coran gives him a fond smile. They are both well aware of who Keith is. It’s a tad embarrassing to admit, but Shiro talks about Keith non-stop. He also enlisted their help when he first started looking for his long-lost friend.

“That’s wonderful!” Allura congratulates him.

“How did you manage that?” Coran asks, and Shiro gives a slight chuckle.

“He’s Ryou’s teacher. He’s been right in front of us the entire time?”

“Mr. K?” Both Coran and Allura speak at the same time. Shiro is usually busy during the day either patrolling the city, or catching up on sleep, so usually Coran or Allura get Ryou to and from school. Which means they have both seen Keith multiple times.

“Yup. That’s Keith”

“Huh. I didn’t see that coming”

“He is a rather dashing young man…” Allura says. Keith seems to have their approval. Which does make Shiro happy, though it doesn’t really mean anything. Keith is Keith, regardless of what others think of him.

“So, did you have an interesting night then?”

“Is he watching Ryou for you?”

“Not interesting in the way you’re implying, Allura. I already told you were not like that. And yes, he agreed to watch Ryou for me, which means I get to see him again tonight” Shiro groans, crossing his arms over his chest.

“And I already told you that I don’t buy it. Not with the way you talk about him. But, I am glad you found him again”

“Thanks, so am I” Shiro shakes his head at her. She’s very insistent on their relationship being more then Shiro will let on. Shiro admits that while he has thought about it, he’s not sure Keith would be on board with the idea.

“Anyway, you interrupted our morning, so it better be for something good”

“It is. I’ve narrowed down the candidates list for Voltron, since it’ll be your team, you can have the final say”

“This couldn’t wait ‘till later?”

“No. We were right in what we discussed yesterday. The Galra is planning something, and they are moving fast” Allura turns away from Shiro, and types something on her laptop, she clicks a file on her screen, and projects it onto the wall in front of them.

“Last night there were multiple Galra Drones spotted patrolling the city” She pulls up the cities cameras from the previous night, and Shiro watches the multiple feeds. Little tiny squares pop up all over the screen showing different, public sections of town. Despite being the dark of night, each screen is full of light and people, as is the average Friday night for the ever-busy Galaxy City. However, through all the people on each camera, Shiro Does not miss the Galra Drones marching amongst the crowds. Drones are usually ordinary people that the Galra have either threatened, or bribed.  They tend to look like everyone else. Another face in the crowd. 

This was different. The way they walked alone was enough to set them apart. They marched. Their bodies rigid and stiff. They blindly moved forward, not caring who or what was in their path. They did not stutter, hesitate, or turn. They only went forward. They had no real destination, if they hit a dead end, they turned completely around, and started walking back.

Then there are the eyes. They are wide open, unblinking, and have a slight glowing yellow tint to them. Like something out of an alien horror movie.

The drones on the film didn’t seem real. They didn’t seem Human; they were more like robots.

Then, if the marching and the glowing eyes wasn’t enough, there was a striking, purple insignia burned onto their forearm. A sharp X shape, with the bottom half being thicker and longer, and a pointed arrow emerging downward from the center. The mark of the Galra.

“That’s not all” Allura interrupts, and Shiro stiffens a bit, not knowing how it could get worse.

“Three people went missing just last night, all within the exact same hour” Allura removes the city camera feeds, and replaces them with newspaper articles that hold a picture, name, and information about the people who were reported missing last night. All three stolen right out of their homes by The Galra

“You’re right. Whatever they’re planning we need to be ready for it”

“Then let’s get on with it”

“There was originally 5 members of Voltron. Galaxy City called them The Knights or The Paladins of Voltron” Coran tugs at the collar of his sleek blue coat, clearing his throat before he begins the story. Shiro’s heard the legends of Voltron numerous times as a kid, he doesn’t know why Coran feels the need to retell it, but one should never interrupt Coran while he’s storytelling. He gets terribly upset.

“The Black Paladin was the leader of Voltron. A natural commander, and gifted warrior. Someone who can pick and choose their battles, knows how to follow the path to victory, but also knows when to step down when needed. A leader who does what’s best for their team and their people. A leader who is calm, collected, and brave, even in the face of danger”

“That is why you, Shiro, will become the Black Knight of Voltron” Allura gives him a proud, happy smile. Her father, Alfor, was the original creator of Voltron, the first person to band the heroes together. This was extremely important to her. He only hopes he doesn’t let her down. There’s a lot of expectations riding on such a title, Shiro doesn’t know if he can deal with such pressure, but he’ll certainly try.

“The Green Paladin is meant to be naturally inquisitive. Packed with knowledge and wisdom beyond them. Creative and inventive the Green Paladin of Voltron connects to the world around them in a natural and deep way not many comprehend” Although Shiro has heard countless stories of Voltron, he must admit, he’s never known of the exact criteria for being a Paladin. Shiro watches Allura shifts through multiple files, he stops her when he spots a familiar face.

“Shiro, meet Pidge Gunderson. Registered w-“

“That’s all I need to know” Shiro knows that face. The name is different, but they are an incredibly close match to an old friend of his. Keith wasn’t exactly Shiro’s only friend. There was still a whole year in schooling between them, which meant Shiro of course had friends in his own grade. The closest of those was a young man named Matt Holt. A sort of awkward boy with reddish brown hair, large round glasses, and big brown eyes. Matt was supposed to attend the Garrison Academy with Shiro, but he was taken in the same raid Shiro was. This man in the picture was nearly an exact replica. That alone had Shiro’s interest.

“Good, because I have practically nothing on them. They are a true enigma” What made Allura pick someone she had very little information out of hundreds of people, Shiro has no idea. He’s not sure how her sorting process works, but he won’t question.

 

“Excellent. One Paladin down. Now, the Blue Paladin of Voltron. The Blue Paladin is flexible and goes with the flow. Just as the water, they can be fun and playful but can also be harsh and uncertain. Confident and powerful, Blue is meant to balance, and retain the humanity within Voltron” Once again, Coran explains the idea behind the Paladins role, and Allura begins to shift through slides of pictures.

“That one” Shiro again stops her when he finds a fitting image. “A Galaxy City Police Officer?” Allura nods her head at Shiro’s question.

“This is Lance Mclain. He entered the Garrison with the top score in his class. Graduated well. He has one of the highest scores for long range shooting, a highly trained sniper. His quintessence gene is registered as inactive, but I’m positive that’s not the case”

Shiro stares at the man on screen, he’s maybe a few years younger than Shiro, with deep tan skin, shaggy brown hair, and bright blue eyes. There’s a smug grin on his lips, and a cheery sparkle in his eye. Looking at his record, and that glint of life in his picture, Shiro can’t help but nod.

“Worth looking into” Shiro agrees, and Allura and Coran nod. Allura moves his file away from the others.

“Were making magnificent progress! Now the Yellow Paladin is the most reliable. The stability and shield of Voltron. The Yellow Paladin is well grounded, caring, and protective, and places the lives, safety, and feelings of others above their own” Shiro stops Allura on the very first picture.

“A cook? Really?”

“This is Hunk Garret. He did test into The Garrison with amazing scores, and was an excellent engineer. However, he moved away from that career in order to help and protect a dear friend. Apparently the Balmera family, a popular and influential mining business, was targeted and attacked by The Galra last year, he stood up and protected them. He acts as their personal body guard, and disguises it by helping the grandmother of the family in her restaurant. Though there are rumors that he both loves it, and is spectacular at it”

Shiro scans the picture, a friendly looking, larger man with tan skin, and short dark brown hair parted down the center. He’s got the friendliest grin Shiro has ever seen.

“He sounds like a worthy man to me”

“Wonderful! We have our top candidates for Voltron!”

“Hold on, you said there were five paladins of Voltron? Counting me, we only have four” Coran and Allura exchange glances, before letting out a slight sigh.

“The fifth paladin of Voltron is the Red Paladin. The second in command, Right hand to the Leader. The Red Paladin is wild, and untamable. Hot headed, temperamental, and difficult. The most unpredictable of Voltron, but a natural fighter. The Red Paladin was always the fastest, and the most agile”

“Where are the candidates for the Red Paladin?” Allura doesn’t pull up any files for this one, and Shiro has an odd idea as to why.

“Well, A Red Paladin isn’t easy to find…Their personalities are…Tricky… I found very few people in the database that I think would be a possible match”   
“And?”

“And there is one choice that I think is a perfect match, but you won’t consider it” She doesn’t have to say it, he knows exactly what she’s talking about.

“No. I’m not working with Red Blade”

“Shiro, Please cons-“

“Coran, you said the Red Paladin is the right hand to the Leader, right? How am I supposed to rely on someone I know as an enemy?”

“He might not be our enemy”

“He has been up until now. Until I have more than one act of understanding, I’ll consider it” Shiro puts his foot down. He’s not going to mess this up. Galaxy City needs Voltron, and he can’t give them a Voltron that’s unreliable. Red Blade is unreliable.

“Shiro, we need a Red Paladin”

“I know that but I can’t just-“ Shiro suddenly stops, Coran’s explanation of the Red Knight echoing in his mind.

“Allura, What if I told you there’s someone who fits the Red Knight Roll, but isn’t registered with the Q-Gene?” Allura folds her arms, and raises an eyebrow at him.

“Shiro, I understand that someone without the gene can still be very strong and skilled but the paladins need to be-“

“No, No, I mean he was never registered” Shiro interrupts her, and she shakes her head.

“That’s impossible, everyone is registered”

“Not Keith. He wasn’t born here, His parents both died when he was young, but they must have faked his papers for school, because he wasn’t registered for having Quintessence. I am also pretty sure he’s never seen a doctor in his life to be registered now”

“And you’re sure he has the gene?”

“Positive” Shiro was the only one who knew about it back in school, but Keith was very clearly a mutant. He was always a little too fast for the average, Shiro noticed right away. Keith confessed it to him too.

“Do you really think he fits the roll of the Red Paladin?” Coran doesn’t sound so convinced, but Shiro is sure there is no one better for the part.

“Yes, I admit, I am surprised he didn’t go through with the garrison, but I know he took the pre-training classes, and he was the top in his level. He’s incredibly fast and an excellent fighter. He’s been taking martial arts classes since we were kids. He’s also a textbook example of hot-headed, well-guarded, and unpredictable, but there is no one I trust more. If I have to have a second in command, it’s Keith” Shiro isn’t going to give up on this idea. At some point, all Keith wanted was to help people, and Shiro knows Keith would be impeccable at it. Shiro can’t imagine someone better for the job.

“That was years ago. He’s probably a different person now, or at least probably not exactly the same as you remember. He might have been an ideal candidate for it three or so years ago, but that doesn’t guarantee he’ll work well for Voltron now” Shiro is all too aware of that possibility. Things change with time, he knows that, and he knows that three years is a long time. He has no doubt that Keith has changed. Shiro never would have imagined Keith as an elementary school teacher, and yet, here he is. However, Shiro has faith, and from what he got last night (and this morning), it’s still his Keith. The little tiny changes mean nothing. At the core, he’s still Keith.

“Allura, please, just trust me on this one” He pleads, but Allura’s eyes only narrow on him. After a couple seconds of their silent stare down, neither making a move forward or back. Allura finally breaks with a sigh.

“You better get moving then, Shiro. It’s time for you to assemble Voltron”

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So this is my first Sheith fic, and Im honestly pretty nervous about it, so I would love to hear what you guys think. Any comments, questions or requests would be amazing to hear! You can also hit me up on tumblr @Gaythoughtsandfeelings


	4. Voltron

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> It's time to form Voltron!

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is like, the longest chapter I have ever written, and I have absolutely no regrets. I hope you guys like it, and please let me know what you think!

“I’m fine, Shae!” He insists, trying to focus on the large bowl of batter in front of him, but his friend isn’t taking no for an answer.   
“You are not fine!” She scolds, pulling the bowl from his hands “Hunk, you’ve barely slept all week, all you do is help us. You need to care for yourself as well” Shae sets the bowl down, and crosses her arms over her chest, focusing her gaze on Hunk.

“It doesn’t matter, I’ve got to look out for you and your family” The Galra, the nasty organization that’s been over taking Galaxy city, tried to take over The Balmera Mines, which was owned by Shae and her family. The restaurant Hunk works in was opened up by Shae’s grandmother in her retirement. When the Balmerians were in trouble, Hunk came running, and he’s been determined to keep them safe ever since.

“We can look out for ourselves now, Thanks to you” Shae, and all her family, are tall and muscular, with skin literally as tough as rocks. Despite this, they are relatively peaceful people, refusing to fight unless completely necessary. They were scared of The Galra when they were first approached, but Hunk gave them the courage to stand up for themselves.

“Besides, you cannot protect us if you are too ill to fight” She makes an excellent point, he does feel pretty tired, and pretty hungry too. Guess he could use a break…

“I can take a thirty-minute break…” Shae shakes her head.

“No, go home for the day” She orders. Hunk sighs.

“Fine, but I’ll be back first thing in the morning” He warns, taking off his apron, and hanging it up in the back office. He collects his car keys and his wallet while he’s there.

“and you’ll call me if anything happens, right?”

“Yes, now go rest!” She shoos him out the back door, no longer giving him a choice. Hunk grunts when he’s shoved out the doorway, and into the side alley. Guess he should head home and make himself dinner, and get a good night sleep for once… It has been a while since he’s gotten a full eight hours…

“Hunk Garret?” Hunks head snaps up at the sound of his name, and he flips around to see a tall, armored figure standing at the edge of the ally. Fear rushes through his body when the guy starts to move closer, but the second he leaves the back shadows, all Hunks fear leaves. _Holy cow, that’s Lion Shadow!_ Everyone in the City knows about Lion Shadow. He’s a first-class hero; a legend. But what is he doing in an ally by Hunk’s work?

“That’s me…” Hey, when the Hero of the city asks for you, you answer. Simple as that. If it was any other sketchy, masked figure, Hunk would run for the hills.

“I have a proposition for you” Lion Shadow takes a step forward and pauses. What could the great hero of Galaxy City want from a chef? “Have you ever heard of Voltron?” He asks, and Hunk nearly laughs.

“Yeah, when I was a little kid” He confirms, and he hears what sounds like a soft chuckle come from Lion Shadow.

“Well, it’s real. Or it was, anyway” He hesitates and sighs “I think you understand that The Galra are a threat to this City, and they’re probably planning something big” he continues. Hunk nods. He does know what The Galra are like. He’s faced them himself.

“Voltron can stop The Galra. Whatever they are planning, Team Voltron can put an end to it”

“You’re reforming Voltron?” Hunk guesses, and the hero before him nods.   
“That’s right. If we want to keep this city safe, if we want to protect the people we love, then it’s time the legendary team makes a comeback”

“Why are you telling me this? You need a cook for the team?” Hunk jokes, but Lion Shadow doesn’t seem to think it’s funny.

“No, I need a Yellow Knight for the team, and I think that it’s supposed to be you”

 _Now that is funny_ , Hunk thinks.

“You want me? To be a Knight?” Hunk can’t help but laugh. The old stories of Voltron describe a sophisticated, well trained and skilled team of Heroes who held the city far from crime with a steady hand. That didn’t sound like Hunk. Hunk’s a cook who used to be an engineer. He isn’t a professionally trained fighter, he’s a big guy who just wants to cook, eat, and enjoy time with his friends. He’s not meant to be a Hero!

“You graduated from The Garrison. You are registered with a high quintessence gene. You were an excellent engineer. Your scores were amazing. But most importantly, you risked everything you had to protect this family from The Galra” His voice drops, and he points one metal clad finger at the restaurant behind Hunk.

“I picked you out of countless candidates _not_ because I believe you have what it takes to be a real hero. But because I think you _already_ are a hero” Hunk is stunned. He didn’t think he could be a Hero, but hey! Here’s the most popular Hero in the whole city telling Hunk that he already is one. That’s a pretty cool compliment. But Hunk’s still not convinced. He was apparently a Hero for saving Shae and her family, but what kind of Hero would he be if he abandoned them?

“I can’t leave the Balmerians unprotected”

“You won’t be. If you join Voltron, you can get rid of The Galra, for good. That family will never have to worry about it ever again. You could ensure their permanent safety” Lion Shadow makes a pretty good argument, but something isn’t quite settling in Hunks stomach. He doesn’t know if it’s the lack of food he’s had today, or the idea of being a defender of Galaxy City, but something in his stomach doesn’t feel quite right.

“You don’t have to decide right now. It’s a big decision. Just know that you were chosen for a reason. If you decide to join, meet me tomorrow at The Castle of Lions, noon” Lion Shadow reaches into a small black pouch that’s clipped to his belt, and pulls out a card. He hands it over to Hunk.

It’s a small, silver card with fancy black lettering. The address to the Castle of Lions is on it. When he looks back up to thank the hero, he’s already gone.

 

 

 

 

 

 

* * *

 

 

 

 

“Leaving early again, Lance?” One of his worker clicks their tongue at him, but he ignores it, and pulls his jacket off the nearby coatrack anyway.

“You know it. I’ve done my fair share of work today, I’m leaving so you have a chance to catch up” He winks at the officer still sat at his desk. Lance doesn’t really care what any one on the force says, or what they call him. He knows he’s not a slacker. He may not always show up on time, and he may leave early, but he does his job, and he does it well. He’s got the best record among the officers, and he’s got the best shot. He’s well aware of that, and so are they.

“Bullshit” someone else coughs, but Lance only grins.

“Say that again when you have better marks then me” Lance says, shooting a sharp wink and some finger guns in their direction. The scowls on his coworkers’ faces is his cue to leave. He salutes them, and quickly backs out the front door of the Police station with his belongings in hand.

Lance can’t say that their words don’t hurt. It’s not exactly fun to be the least popular person at work. All his coworkers are envious, and they’re cold towards him because of it. He will never let that get to him though. He worked too hard for this job, he’s been training since he was six. He’s always dreamed of being a Hero; it’s all he’s ever wanted. He has that now with being an officer.

He finds his car, and sits in silence, happy that he’s alone. He leans his head back against the head rest and closes his eyes. He takes in a deep breath…

“Aren’t you leaving work a little early?” A voice is suddenly right next to him, and Lance admittedly yelps in shock.

“Holy shit! Who the fu-“ He turns to who has intruded his personal space, and is surprised to come face to face with shining silver armor and the dark visor of a hemlet.

“ _Holy shit_ ”

 He repeats with a gasp. Sitting in his passenger seat is none other than the famous Lion Shadow. The biggest superhero in the entire city. This guy was incredible. Lance followed this guy in the media constantly. He read every article, saw every candid photo, and watched every single interview.  He’s Lances freaking idol _. And he’s sitting in my car._ Lance is shocked.

“Good evening, Lance” He says. It’s the really cool, calm voice he’s heard so many times on the news.

“You’re Lion Shadow!” is the only intelligible thing lance manages to say, and he instantly want’s to slap himself.

“That I am” The Hero chuckles.

“You’re in my car!” Lance once again states the obvious, but thankfully, Lion Shadow is an amazingly patient and kind dude.

“I am. Do you know why I am in your car?” He asks, and Lance freezes.

_Oh god, why is he in my car?_

“No?” He chokes out.

“I’m here because The Galra are getting out of hand. It looks like they’re planning something. Whatever they’ve got up their sleeve, I don’t plan on facing them alone.” That lights a fire under Lance’s ass.

“You want the help of the Police Force? We’d love to help you! I mean, I would love to help you, I don’t know how my coworkers would feel about it. I personally love your work, I mean, you’re amazing, but some of them really don’t like you cause they complain you take all their good jobs, but it’s not like they’re doing their jobs anyway, we should totally be thanking you but a l-“ Lance doesn’t realize that he’s rambling until Lion Shadow cuts him off with a deep  chuckle.

“I’m sure your comrades are good at what they do, and I don’t blame them for not having the highest opinions of me, but I’m not here for them.” You could probably see the gears in Lance’s head ticking and grinding away. He was sure there was steam coming out his ears, too.

“You’re not here for the police force?”

“Well technically, I am. Just not all of it” You could hear the grin in his voice, he was apparently really amused by the officer.

“Have you ever head of ‘Voltron’, Lance?”

“Who hasn’t heard of Voltron!” Galaxy City’s legendary Defender was one of Lance’s favorite stories as a child. Just the mention of the Super Hero Team had him bouncing in his seat.

“Well that’s what we need if we really want to stop The Galra. So, I’m reforming Voltron.”

Holy Shit. Voltron? Back in action? How freaking cool is that! He’ll finally get to see his childhood Heroes with his own eyes.

“Voltron is a big responsibility. Its Knights are supposed to be the cream of the crop, the smartest, the strongest, the bravest, the noblest, the most skilled. Each member of Voltron is selected for very specific reasons, they are each chosen for their strong and unique powers and capabilities” Lion Shadow continues on. The way he talks is so clean and precise, and all his words are delivered with such a soothing, warm tone that makes Lance want to ask if he’s ever thought about narrating nature documentaries.

“Lance. I’m telling you all this for a reason...” Lances train of thought is suddenly back on track, and Lion Shadow has his full, undivided attention.

“I’m telling you this” The Hero repeats, when Lance hikes up an eyebrow at him in confusion.

“Because you’ve been selected to be a Paladin of Voltron”

 _Holy Shit. Holy Shit. Holy Shit!_ Screw getting to watch his favorite childhood story come back to life, he gets to be a part of it! Who in their right freaking mind would turn something like this down?!

“Yes!” Lance cheers in excitement, tossing his hands in the air. When he hears another tiny chuckle next to him, he settles down, bringing his arms back towards him, and clears his throat.

“I mean, yes. Yes, thank you so much for this opportunity. I would be honoured to be a part of Voltron” He goes for a much more calm, smoother answer, and he gets the strangest feeling that he’s being smiled at.

“Glad to hear it. Meet me at the Castle of Lions tomorrow at noon” Lion Shadow reaches behind himself, into the little pouch connected to his belt, and pulls out a small business card. Lance takes it without a second thought, and clutches it tightly in his hand.

“I’ll be there” He assures. The Hero nods his head slightly, and then right before Lances eyes, He disappears.

_So Cool._

 

* * *

 

Dim Lights. Blurry images. Hundreds of people in a crowd. Smoke. Out-dated camera footage. Biased Newspaper headlines. Lies.

Every single picture, video, and article published in regard to the explosion in the Kerberos building at The Galaxy Garrison is displayed across the room, either on monitors or on pin boards.

That is what Pidge has been staring at for the last three years. She’s scanned through everything, every last detail available, and she hasn’t been able to find a thing. Not a single trace.

“Come on, Matt. Where are you?” She whispers to herself, ignoring the rest of the monitors around her, to focus solely on the one in the center. Yesterday, she found a new clip of footage she’d never seen before. A different angle of the Kerberos building, taken from a security camera of a nearby store. The store was far away enough to not be in the usual perimeter of suspicion, but just close enough to where you can see the back-left corner of the now demolished building. She watches and scans every single moment of the video. She restarts the video over and over again, from the second the explosion goes off, to long after the smoke settles, looking for anything.

“Pidge Gunderson?” Her concentration is broken by a loud knocking at her door, and a deep voice calling her name. But she doesn’t budge. She pauses the video, takes a second to set her focus again, and then continues it.

“You know, it’s not very nice to just ignore someone knocking on your door.” The voice from before is no longer coming from the other side of her apartment walls, but from right behind her. She yelps in surprise, and nearly rockets out of her desk chair.

“What the hell do you think you’re doing in my place!”  She whips around to face the intruder, but freezes when her eyes meet the black visor of a solid silver helmet.

“Well, I’m here to talk to you, of course” She can hear the smile in his voice, and to her, for whatever reason, it’s unsettling.

“I don’t care, I’m busy” Hero or not, no one is going to interrupt her. She doesn’t care at all why someone like Lion Shadow would just barge into her apartment. Her brother is more important. Hoping that if he’s ignored, he’ll leave, she swirls her chair right back around to face her monitors, and re-starts the video. She watches for the hundredth time as the whole building bursts into flames and shatters. She zooms in and out, but it’s pointless, there is no seeing through the smoke.

“Are you looking for Matt?” The voice behind her softens, it loses its metallic edge, and it becomes warmer, softer, and sort of sad. She pauses the video again, and spins back to face Lion Shadow at the mention of her brother’s name. _How does he know about Matt?_ She asks herself, but the question is quickly answered. This time, when she turns around, she isn’t faced with a blank helmet. Instead she finds dull grey eyes staring desperately at the scene in front of him. Not at Pidge, no, but at the flames on the screen.

“Shiro?” She gasps in shock, catching the attention of the older man. He looks down at her, and gives her a gentle smile.

“Hi Katie.”

Katie. She hasn’t used that name in a long time. She hasn’t seen Shiro in a long time either. The same amount of time. Since her brother left for The Galaxy Garrison.

Shiro looks so different now. She used to seem him all the time. Takashi Shirogane was a close family friend. He went to school with Matt, he was going to go to the Garrison with Matt. He disappeared the same day. He used to be so gentle looking, so warm. His hair isn’t the same pitch black it used to be, it’s a similar style sure, the undercut is still there, but now there’s a big tuft of white hair at the forelock. Grey eyes that used to sparkle now look so cold, and so empty. He’s gotten taller, and buffer over the years, he’s really built like a super-hero now. He also has a large, jagged scar running over the bridge of his nose. Something tells Pidge that isn’t his only scar.

“You… You’re Lion Shadow?” The idea that he’s been alive, well, and in the same city all this time, it hits her like a brick. Things might have been a bit easier on her if she had Shiro around. All those years, all that time. There was no one to help her up, no one to have her back, all this time. Shiro was right there.

She watches as he just calmly nods his head. Her firsts clench up at her sides as she stands to her feet.

“You.. You” She doesn’t know what to say to him, there’s so much running through her mind, she doesn’t know what to do. She starts shaking, her voice quivers, and some tears start to welt up in her eyes. She wants to scream at him, hit him, ask him so many questions, but she doesn’t know where to begin.

“Your mom told me you left the city” A hug. That’s where she starts. She all but launches herself into Shiro, who gladly wraps his arms around her in return.

“You’re impossible to find” Shiro had been looking for her. Shiro had tried to find her. Tried to be there for her, but she hadn’t made that easy. After Matts disappearance, she didn’t trust anything and she felt like she had nothing. She went to The Garrison to snoop around. They told the city that the Kerberos building exploding was an accident. That a student had accidently messed with something they shouldn’t have in one of the labs. It was a half assed story that Pidge didn’t buy for a single second. The Garrison wouldn’t let her in as she was, she’d already been flagged by them for trying to hack their files, so she disguised herself. She all but erased Katie Holt from existence, and went off to the school as Pidge Gunderson.

“How did you find me?” Pidge’s work is indisputable, she realizes. No one should have been able to track her. Her work in creating her second life, and hiding her original had been solid. So how?

“It was a complete accident” Shiro laughs a little bit. Their embrace ends, but he places a gentle hand on her shoulder.

“Listen, Katie…” He starts, but she quickly cuts him off.

“Pidge” She corrects him, he pauses and hesitates but nods in agreement. He knows the nickname, he knows where it comes from and he knows that she used to hate it. But he knows Matt gave her that name, and he figures that why she wants to use it.

“Pidge. Matt and I were taken by The Galra. It wasn’t an accident”

“I knew it!” She exclaims. She knew The Garrison had been bullshitting the whole story. She knew her brother was alive, and if Shiro is alive-if he escaped and he’s here-then maybe her brother has too! Maybe Shiro knows where he is!

“Do you know where Matt is?!”

“No, I don’t” He sighs, and shakes his head. “I’m so sorry, Pidge. I don’t remember much from being captive. I don’t know what happened to him” Her heart drops down to the pit of her stomach.

“Pidge, The Galra are planning something. I don’t know what it is, but I don’t trust it. I don’t trust them, and I want to be ready to stop anything they try and throw at Galaxy City” She knows Lion Shadow is strong, but he’s not that strong. The Galra are a huge organization, he can’t stop them by himself.

“I’m building a team. To be specific, I am reforming Voltron”

 _Voltron._ Matt and Pidge used to go to bed every single night hearing legends of the incredible super-heroes. Almost every child in Galaxy City heard those stories. The name makes a shiver run down her spine.

“I found you, because Pidge Gunderson popped up from the Garrison Database as a candidate to be The Green Paladin of Voltron” His hand moves away from her shoulder to ruffle her hair.

“The second your picture popped up on the screen, I knew. You look just like Matt” His lips twitch up in an odd, sort of proud smile. She can feel her heart shooting back up into her chest just to thump against her ribcage at his words.

“You want me to be a part of Voltron?” She doesn’t understand what he’s saying to her, the offer he’s eluding too. It doesn’t make sense to her. Why would she be a part of Voltron? It’s supposed to be an elite group made from the best of the best. She knows she’s smart. She knows she could outwit half the people in this City without breaking a sweat, but she isn’t a fighter. She doesn’t have amazing abilities, not like the old legendary paladins. She’s an engineer. A hacker. What part could she possibly have to play in a team like that?

“Yes, I do. The Commander of The Castle of Lions chose you as a candidate from hundreds of people, and from those numerous candidates, I narrowed it down to you without thinking twice about it. There is no one better suited for that role”

“Shiro, I am not a fighter” She starts to argue, but Shiro shakes his head.

“Voltron isn’t about being the strongest. Each member of Voltron is supposed to bring something unique to the team. You don’t have to be the strongest. You can be the kindest, or the bravest. The most creative, or the smartest. Voltron isn’t supposed to be about fighting. It’s about saving and protecting and helping. I am not asking you to be a fighter, I am not asking you to be something you’re not to do something you don’t want to do. I am just asking you to be you, and to help me take down The Galra” He’s right. She does want to take down The Galra. They took her family away from her. She has every right to take them down. It’s her responsibility to avenge her family, however, it’s also her obligation to _find_ her family.

“I don’t know…” She glances back at her monitors, at all her findings, all her research. Three years’ worth of hard work and misery and loneliness. She can’t give it up.

“I have to find my Dad and Matt” She decides. She can’t give up her mission.

“Pidge, I am not asking you to pick one or the other. I wouldn’t do that to you. I want to find your family too, but I also want to take down The Galra so that they can never hurt anyone like that ever again. Think of how many other families have already been ruined, or will be ruined by them. I won’t let that happen anymore. I promise you, I will do everything I can to help you find Matt and your Dad, no matter what. But know, at The Castle of Lions, as a member of Voltron, you could do both. You could help me get rid of The Galra, once and for all, and you’d have access to all the data and resources you need to find your family.” Shiro always knew exactly what to say to her. The Castle of Lions would have everything she needs. Their tech, their data, their archives, it would surely be more then what she has.

“You don’t have to make a decision right now, okay? Meet me at The Castle of Lions tomorrow at noon. We can discuss it further, and then you can give me an answer” He reaches into the little pouch attached to his belt, and hands her a small business card. He gives a warm smile, and places his helmet back on his head.

“And Pidge, just a thought; Try watching that video a couple hours before the explosion actually goes off, I’m willing to bet someone inside knew what was about to go down” He suggests, pointing at the screen behind her. She raises an eyebrow at him, but turns to do it anyway. She rewinds the video for a couple hours before the explosion goes off, and then speeds through it, keeping her eyes set in focus. Sure enough, just like Shiro predicted, a good thirty minutes before the explosion goes off, she catches a glimpse of someone ditching the building through a two-story window.  It’s a very short clip, only lasting a good thirty seconds, but she catches it. When she zooms in, and clears up the footage, she finds a Galra emblem printed on the man’s chest.

“How did y-“She turns back to thank Shiro for the advice, but he’s already gone. She can’t help but scoff. Of course, he leaves without saying goodbye.

Every single instinct in her body, every last bit of common sense, tells her that this is a terrible idea. That it’s stupid and reckless and probably extremely dangerous. Every part of her tells her that she shouldn’t split her focus, that she should concentrate on finding her family, and that’s it.

But Shiro just proved to her that two minds are better than one, and that you can’t always do everything alone.

 

 

 

 

* * *

 

 

 

 

“Wow! You look… You look really nice.” Shiro, as awkward as ever, clears his throat, and rubs the back of his neck when Keith approaches him. Shiro is waiting in the parking lot by the park. The same park Keith spent all morning with Ryou in. As he approaches, Keith can feel the cold grey eyes slowly checking him out, and he gains a tiny boost to his self-confidence.

“You look nice too” He returns the complement, because it’s true. Well, it’s always true. Shiro always looked nice. He was just naturally and consistently gorgeous. Keith nervously jumps up and plants a kiss on Shiro’s cheek as a greeting. Shiro tries to laugh it off and quickly changes the conversation…

“I look underdressed” His friend corrects with a laugh. Well, he isn’t completely wrong there. Shiro is wearing a plain black t-shirt and blue jeans, with a neat leather messenger bag slung over his shoulder. _He doesn’t look bad though._ Shiro never looked bad, at least according Keith.

Keith is the one who got all dolled up. He’s wearing sleek black skinny jeans, because he has to admit, they make his ass look great, and a dark red button up shirt with the sleeves rolled up to his elbows. He even brushed his hair out and pulled it into a neat, high ponytail that his hair is just barely long enough for. He spent like half an hour in the shower, and another fifteen minutes to pick out clothes. Yeah, He really wanted to look nice for Shiro. In fact, Shiro is probably the only person he would ever put this much effort into looking good for.

“You look fine” Keith assures him, which earns him a soft smile as they start walking. Shiro’s hand brushes Keith’s briefly before gently taking hold of it for a little bit while they walk.

“I set us up a picnic” Shiro says, leading him closer towards the pond at the edge of the park.

“You shouldn’t’ve”

“It’s alright. I wanted to. I was the one who suggested this. Besides, I’m pretty sure I owe you three years worth’s of this sort of thing…” Shiro gives him that classic, dazzling smile. He takes his hand away from Keith’s, and plants it in his pocket. Keith can’t say he’s not slightly annoyed at the move.

They take a seat on the blanket Shiro laid out in the grass. It looks like Shiro put a lot of effort into this picnic, and it makes Keith’s heart flutter as he watches his friend pull out a bottle of wine and two glasses from the large picnic basket that was placed at the end of the blanket, before pouring a glass for Keith, and then one for himself. An oddly intimate gesture. Something in Keith’s chest falls and feels warm all of a sudden. He has no idea what to call this. A date? Instead of dwelling on it, Keith just takes his glass and starts drinking.

“Usually people toast before drinking” Shiro laughs.

“What do we have to toast to?” It’s a stupid question, because he already knows what Shiro is going to say.

“Well, I thought being together again after being separated for years would be a good thing to toast to”

 _Together_. Yeah, _togethe_ r sounded pretty good to Keith. He raises his glass towards Shiro’s, who gently clinks their glasses together, and gives a hesitant smile to Keith.

“To Friendship.” _Shiro, you_ _idiot,_ he thinks to himself _._

“ _To us_ ” Keith corrects, using every ounce of his willpower to not roll his eyes.

 Shiro seems to like that one better.

“ _To us_ ” He repeats, giving Keith another, even more dazzling smile as he pulls his glass away. He takes a sip, and then sets the glass down. It’s weird to think that Shiro was able to pick out what kind Keith would like. They didn’t drink as kids, believe it or not, so there’s no way Shiro could know for sure what his preference is. Either Shiro ordered one of his favorites and hoped for the best, or he made a guess at what Keith would like. Doesn’t matter which one, because he chose right.

“I brought a lot of different snacks, cause I didn’t know what to get you” Shiro laughs a bit at his own expense, as he starts pulling different containers out of the basket, and laying them out in front of them.

“So, what are you in the mood for?” _You…_ It’s Keith’s first thought, because he’s not even looking at all the food he brought, he’s just looking at Shiro. Noticing how soft Shiro’s smile is, and how close he is. Add that to their strangely romantic setting; It’s night and everything is dark, they’re only partially lit by a nearby street lamp, and no one else is there except the gentle rustle of the trees in the wind and the wailing sirens, barely audible in the distance. Everything is just _still_. He’s not really sure he wants to eat, he think’s he’d rather revel in the moment.

“Not sure, I’ve never felt this calm in a while, kind of just want to enjoy it” Keith doesn’t really know what this is or how to begin. Now that he had found him, things felt right, but there was just too much time and awkwardness between them. Keith looks up to ask him something-anything-but he fumbles when he finds Shiro eyeing him up. And not subtly either.  Keith clears his throat, not really knowing how to interpret the gaze that’s on him.

“I think I know what you mean”

Shiro reaches forward to set his wine glass down. Keith notices that when Shiro settles back down he’s slightly closer than he was before

 “So” Keith closed his eyes and listened to nothing. Thankful, and yet slightly nervous to be left alone with Shiro finally. Yesterday was their reunion. Emotions took the reins and controlled the day. But now that the dust has settled, and they’ve had a bit of time apart and time to think, the questions and suspicions would be rolling in. This is the part Keith feared. He wanted Shiro back in his life, more than anything in the world, just knowing his best friend was beside him made him endlessly giddy. However, knowing that there was a large part of his life that would not only be frowned upon, but is also in direct conflict with Shiro, is gnawing away at him. If it wasn’t for that, Keith would be welcoming Shiro with open arms and an endless amount of love with no regrets and no second thoughts.

“We’ve got a lot of catching up to do” Shiro jokes, and Keith nods in agreement, hiding his smile with his wine glass.

“Why don’t you tell me how you became an elementary school teacher?  I have to admit, I didn’t see that one coming. I thought you hated kids” He’s starting with the easy questions, working his way up to the bigger ones. The more risqué ones. He knows it. He knows how Shiro works.

“I couldn’t go to the garrison without you. I took the entrance exams. I passed them with flying colors, I was the top candidate. I figured you’d want me to go on, even without you. But the second I walked through the Garrison doors, I lost it. They have a small memorial to you in the main building. I took one look at your picture and I high-tailed it out of there. There was no possible way that I would be able to walk in their everyday, knowing I was living our dream without you, and be forced to look at you every day while doing it. So, I left” He explains, Shiro drops his gaze a bit. He feels guilty, Keith realizes.

“You gave up your dream be-“

“You’re not listening to me, Shiro. I didn’t give up _my_ dream. I gave up _our_ dream. This was something we both wanted, something we were going to do _together_. I was not going to do it without you” Keith is very quick to correct him, because it’s true. Shiro is the one who told him about The Garrison. Shiro was the one who convinced him to go with him. Shiro is the one who put the ideas of being a hero in his head. There was no way in hell he would live out the dream alone.

“Now, As I was saying” He doesn’t let Shiro say anything in response, because he knows whatever it would be, would hurt. “I left The Garrison instantly. Our goal to get in The Garrison was the only thing that even vaguely kept me standing after your disappearance. So without that, I kind of lost it again” It’s embarrassing to admit, but it’s true, so he leaves it in. Keith was an absolute mess without Shiro. The older man had always been his rock, and his guiding light. Without him, Keith felt like he was tossing about endlessly in shallow water. Half way between drowning and drying out, not having a clue in the world as to what to do.

“I spent a lot of time with my parents… Eventually, someone told me that there were lots of ways you could be a Hero, I didn’t have to go to The Garrison to make a difference. So I went back to school to find something. One of my teachers told me I was brilliant and showered me with compliments, but topped it off by telling me I could never do anything with it because I didn’t have the discipline, restraint, or the patience to do anything with my love of knowledge. Next thing I know, I’m looking into being a teacher purely out of spite.” That’s the real, honest, full story as to why he became a teacher in the first place.

“You did it out of spite?” He laughs “Why am I not surprised” He rolls his eyes at Keith, but it’s in a playful manner, and it makes Keith smile. Even more…

“But why Elementary school? I thought you didn’t like little kids?” Now, this was the really embarrassing part. Choosing his life career primarily out of spite doesn’t even hold a candle to this one.

“I didn’t” He agrees, nodding his head a bit. He can already feel his face heating up, as he looks away from Shiro’s gaze to finish off his wine glass.

“But you did” He admits, he can see Shiro’s eyes go wide a bit from the corner of his vision.

“When I started thinking about who I wanted to teach, I originally wanted to teach Highschool kids. Then I started thinking about this conversation we had one time, about how you wouldn’t actually mind having kids someday, and it got me thinking: You know, maybe little kids wouldn’t be so bad after all? So I thought I’d give it a chance.” By the look in Shiro’s eyes, Keith knows he remembers the exact same conversation, though he wishes he wouldn’t. It was one of their more, uh, _romantic_ , conversations.

They were talking about their futures one night; lying in Shiro’s bed, staring up at the ceiling as they shared their dreams. Shiro had mentioned how he wouldn’t mind having kids with his spouse. Keith disagreed, seeing as he found babies and children to be loud, sort of gross, and more trouble than they were probably worth. Shiro shook his head and said ‘I don’t know, I think we could handle it. I think we’d actually be pretty good parents…’

It was a slip of the tongue. A mistake that slapped Keith hard in the face, making him realize that the dream spouse Shiro had just gabbed about sharing his future with was probably actually Keith, and not some unknown future figure. What Shiro had implied shocked them both into silence momentarily, until Keith decided to laugh it off; ‘Fine, but you’re changing all the diapers’, he had said, because he was too much of a chicken to say what both of them were thinking. They never brought it up again, but Keith thought about it way too often.

“So, what about you, what have you been doing all these years?” Keith clears his throat, quickly shifting the conversation, afraid to bring up that day in any more detail. But he doesn’t stop to realize exactly what he just asked.

“Well, uh” Shiro rubs the back of his neck a bit. “That’s actually part of the reason I asked you out tonight” He pauses to reach for the wine bottle, so he can refill Keith’s glass.

“I need to tell you something” Oh. Oh crap. Keith doesn’t like the sound of that, maybe he should have kept the conversation on him after all. The embarrassment would be worth it if he could avoid where he thinks this topic is going.

He keeps his focus down at the ground, looking at the soft blanket beneath his legs.

“I think I’m hungry after all, what did you bring?” He says, however, Keith’s stomach is twisting too much for him to actually be hungry. He’s simply trying to deflect the conversation.

“A couple different things; some pre-made sandwiches, some chips, some salad, some dessert” Shiro takes a minute before taking the bait, but when Keith smiles at him, he goes for it.

“You really put a lot of effort into this, huh?” He tries not to think about that. Maybe another time, another day, he’ll fantasize about that. The romantic and intimate gesture Shiro tried to create with this little picnic. Right now, his heart is beating fast enough as it is.

“As long as you like it, it’s worth it” Shiro shrugs, which is his way of saying he did in fact stress over this a great deal. 

 “I do, it’s really nice, but honestly, I think I would have preferred to stay home” He adds, trying desperately to take the conversation somewhere else. He knows he’s going to lose Shiro’s attention soon if he doesn’t push it. He needs to keep that topic at bay.

“Really?”

“Of course. Home is so much more comfortable…more _intimate_ …” He draws out the word, and he hopes Shiro’s imagination can do the rest of the work. He even tops it off by gently placing his hand over Shiro’s thigh. To his surprise, Shiro doesn’t take it off, instead, he gently lays one hand over keiths, and gives a little smirk.

“I agree, it’s more personal, and I prefer that too, but for what I need to tell you, I thought a bit more of a public space would be better” No, no it’s not. Keith is pretty sure he knows what Shiro is going to tell him. He’s going to tell him about Lion Shadow, and nothing about that conversation is public friendly. Nothing about that conversation is friendly at all.

“Shiro I th-“ He doesn’t know what he’s going to say, really. Whatever he can to get Shiro’s mind off of Lion Shadow, he supposes, but he never gets to say it.

“Keith, please let me get this over with” He really doesn’t like the sound of that, but he shuts his mouth anyway.

“I am sure you’ve seen it on the news, it’s sort of popular around the city at the moment. The talk of the town” _No, no, no._ He chants in his head, but Shiro lets out a tiny sigh, and keeps going.

“I’m talking about Lion Shadow. You’ve heard of him, haven’t you?” Keith swallows, trying to give relief to the growing dryness in his throat, and nods his head. Shiro’s voice drops, and he does a quick glance, making sure there is no one around. The closest people to them is an elderly couple that’re just walking by. Other than that, the stillness of the park is relatively undisturbed.

“That’s me. That’s what I’ve been doing for the past couple years. I was held in a Galra facility for months, they tested on me. Eventually someone broke me out and next thing I know in the medical bay at The Castle of Lions. They fixed me up, and taught me how to use my new powers. They taught me to be the Hero I always dreamt of being” Shiro is really quiet as he explains to Keith in a rush. To anyone else, he’d probably sound crazy, but Keith knows it’s true. Because he was there. His dad freed Shiro. Keith himself took him to The Castle. He knows it’s all true, but he still doesn’t want to hear it.

“Shiro, you idiot” Keith cuts him off, and reaches over to punch him in the arm, then freezes, before quickly leaning forward, and tossing both arms around Shiro in a protective manner.

“Do you have any idea how incredibly fucking dangerous that is. Do you know how many times I’ve watched that guy almost die on the news? What the fuck were you thinking!” Keith scolds him, mumbling into his broad chest. He’s been wanting say that since the day he saw Lion Shadow for the first time, and knew instantly that it was his old friend. The conversation is here now, he can’t avoid it anymore, so he should just play it off as much as he can.

“I was thinking that I finally had everything I needed to help people, I could be a real hero” He sounds hurt, a bit defeated. Regardless, his arms move to hold Keith in return. One hand by Keith’s lower back, the other at the back of Keith’s head.

“You were always a hero, stupid” He might be a bit of a hypocrite, telling Shiro he didn’t need The Castle of Lions to teach him how to be a hero, when he was the one who dropped him off there in the first place. In his defense, he didn’t expect them to turn his friend into some glorified symbol. He just knew a normal hospital wouldn’t know what to do with someone like Shiro, and they would.

“Keith... Please... I’m sorry, I know what I do is risky. But it’s also what’s right, and I need you to do the same. I need to ask you to do the same”

“What?” Keith is confused, and shocked at the switch in topic. He quickly put’s distance between him and Shiro, placing his hands on Shiro’s shoulders to keep him at arm’s length.

He knew Shiro would want to tell him about his double life, but he certainly didn’t see this part coming.

“The Galra are planning something, I’m sure of it. I need to stop them. I need to be ready for them. So I’m reforming Voltron.” Keith’s head starts spinning. The name ‘Voltron’ pounding away in his thoughts. He knows about the famous super-hero team. Shiro himself told him the stories. The Blade of Marmora also told him a great deal about the legendary defender. If Shiro was indeed bringing it back, and he was bringing this up with Keith, then he really _, really_ did not like where this conversation was going.

“I want you to join me, Keith. I remember what you’re capable of. I’ve always know that you could be a great hero. I don’t think there’s anyone else I’d want by my side in this battle. The head of Voltron always has one team member they can trust above everything else. There’s always a right-hand man. I want that to be you, Keith. I need that to be you. There’s no one else I could ever trust to back me up like you” Shiro’s face heats up a bit as he reaches up for Keiths hands, and pulls them into his own, squeezing them tight. It’s the only thing that anchors Keith to the real world. The solid world, as everything else starts to spin and dissipate until he feels like the rest of the world is falling out from under him. His heart drops to his stomach and his stomach starts twisting in knots. He wants to double over from the sensation. Shiro trusts him. Shiro wants him; Wants him to be by his side, wants to fight beside him. Wants to be _with_ him. Shiro wants him to be a Hero. But in Shiro’s world, he’s is technically already a villain, and you can’t be both.

“No” He answers, without giving it much thought, and he yanks his hand away from Shiro’s, and scrambles to his feet.

“Keith”

“I’m sorry, Shiro. I can’t.” He wants to say more, but he can’t. His words, his breath, his heart, they’re all caught in his throat. Keith begins to tear up, and wants to run away. He’s saved when his phone starts going off in his pocket. He pulls it out to see his Father’s name spread out as the caller ID. Both horrible, and wonderful timing he assumes.

“I have to go. I’m sorry Shiro, I have to go” He repeats, rushing away from their picnic with tears nearly flowing from his eyes, as he presses the phone to his ear as he rushes for the exit.

“Keith? You there? We need you at the base, Now.” Is all he hears on the other side of the line before it’s abruptly cut-off. Now isn’t exactly the best time for The Blade of Marmora to demand his presence, but Keith knows he has to go. He gets to the parking lot, and then he makes sure no-one’s watching or following him, and takes off towards downtown as fast as he can, not daring to look back.

_I’m so sorry Shiro, but I can’t be the Hero you want me to be._

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter was a roller coaster for me! Each section had a lot of challenges, but I greatly enjoyed each one! I hope you all did too! 
> 
> Huge shout out to my beta, Jacob. Keith's section was a huge thorn in my side, for the longest time I just kept staring at it and I knew something wasnt right with it. They stepped in, and worked it with me, and they totally helped me fix it up into what I wanted it to be. 
> 
> As always, thank you so much for reading, if you have any questions, or comments, or anything at all, I would absolutely love to hear them! Receiving comments always makes my day seem extra fantastic!


	5. Reminder

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> He was okay. But now Keith wasn’t.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Ya'll, this was not an easy chapter to write. I hope you like it.

Keith was dragged to The Blade of Marmora base, just to hear about an excess number of clones wandering around the city. He’s shown surveillance videos, and told to be careful and on the lookout, and then they send him home. He was hoping for more. He was hoping for a long mission, something dangerous, something exciting. Something to take his mind off of Shiro.

 Instead, he spent the entire night roaming the city, trying to track drones, because it was the only thing he could do. It still wasn’t enough though. He skipped around the city, Shiro’s words bouncing around in his mind. _Voltron._ Shiro wanted Keith to be a part of Voltron. Wanted Keith to be a _Hero._

But it was too late for that; Keith was already a _Villain_. He couldn’t play both. He kept reminding himself of that. He cannot be both. He cannot be a hero and a villain at the same time. He cannot be by Shiro’s side, and his enemy, at the same time. It was one or the other. He felt bad. He doesn’t even want to imagine what Shiro is feeling. Having to be so harshly rejected like that, having to watch Keith run from him like that. He knows what he did was harsh, but he panicked. Now he’s stuck with all these thoughts. All these emotions. He knows he needs to figure them out now, but he keeps pushing them aside. He knows he has a decision to make but he doesn’t want to make it; so he isn’t going to. He wouldn’t even know how to look Shiro in the eye and tell him that they can’t be together, not like they used to. He can’t reject Shiro so soon after being reunited. It would be too painful for both of them, but he knows if he wants to maintain his position with the blades, he’s going to have to.

Keith tries to refrain from thinking about Shiro as much as he can. Tries not to think about the dazzling smile he has, or the endearing way he laughs. He tries to push away the memory of Shiro’s arms around him, holding him close. The hardest one he tries to forget is the feeling of Shiro’s lips kissing the back of his head. He tried to stop himself from imagining what those would feel like against his own. He can’t do it though. No matter how hard he tries, how much he struggles with them, they keep coming. He runs around the City for hours, trying to avoid these thoughts but they always catch up to him. They haunt him. They’re going to continue to haunt him until he gets closure. But that means doing something that’s going to bother and hurt him even more.

He has to talk to Shiro.

 

 

 

By the time Keith stops wandering around the city and stalking Galra sentries, it’s about three in the morning. He makes it home, and begrudgingly wraps himself up in his painfully empty bed. It’s so strange to him that he got used to cuddling Shiro so quick. All it took was one night for him to become addicted to it. Just one night, and now Keith loathes the idea of sleeping alone.

Then again, he realizes that it wasn’t really one single night. It was years. Keith grew accustomed to it over a set of many, many years. The sleepovers had started when they were just kids in middle school. Keith was probably around twelve or thirteen years old when they first became friends and first started hanging out outside of school grounds. At first, they tended to sleep separately, one on the ground one on the bed. That all ended one night when Keith had a bad nightmare about his parents. That was the first night that one of Keith’s nightmares peacefully ended on its own, and instead shifted to something calmer, happier, that let him sleep soundly. That was the first time he woke up in Shiro’s arms. Shiro never asked any questions. He never said anything about the nightmares. Which was a relief for little Keith, who had expected to be relentlessly teased about it. Every night they spent together since had been in the same bed, in each other’s arms. As mentioned before, Later on, towards the end of their time in high school, Shiro started getting buried in his work. He had taken extra classes, he had taken harder classes, he joined extra clubs and was taking all sorts of tests, all in the name of trying to get into the galaxy garrison with extremely high marks. His time had been consumed by his academics, leaving very little time for a social life, which meant he had very little time for Keith. This put a big damper on their relationship. It made Shiro stay up way past his self-appointed ‘bedtime’, it made Keith more frustrated and grumpy, it put Shiro in an austere mood. It drained them. The less time they spent together, the worse they each got.

Keith’s solution? To start sneaking into Shiro’s room at night. He figured if he can’t spend time with Shiro during the day, then he’d do it at night. And he couldn’t have Shiro risking his much-needed sleep just to be with him, so he figured he would just sleep with Shiro. In all reality, his plan didn’t actually make much sense. They still didn’t get much time to talk or hang out, instead every single night of the week, Keith would crawl into Shiro’s bed, and they’d fall asleep together. Somehow, it worked. They didn’t need to talk, they didn’t need to go out and about; they just needed to be with one other. It solved everything. Shiro found it easier to sleep when he had Keith in his arms. Their individual moods improved. It solved all their frustration and awkwardness about the situations. Cuddling became their ‘cure-all’ to every situation. Thinking about that now, Keith thinks it might have worked a bit too well.

 In the time after Shiro’s disappearance, Keith’s bed and body felt agonizingly cold every night. He thought it had gotten better, that he had finally gotten used to it and moved past that. Now that he’s had a taste of it again and remembers fully what it’s like, he realizes he never really did get over it. The pain of it had just grown numb, and he had stopped caring. That’s what really happened. But now he remembers, and that horrible feeling is back. Without that familiar warmth behind him, it now takes Keith hours to fall asleep, and when he finally does, his dreams are no kinder to him then his earlier thoughts. His subconscious mind plays with him, showing him blurry scenes of his past, all of them with Shiro. When his dreams catch up to the present, it doesn’t stop. Scenes keep playing, feeling so real yet so off at the same time. From the day he met Shiro, all the way up to their picnic date a couple hours ago. It ended when he started running away from Shiro. But in his dream, he just kept running. He was running like something was chasing him, but he didn’t really know. He didn’t look back. He didn’t want to. He just kept running and running until he didn’t know what he was running from anymore.

When he finally wakes up at about ten in the morning, he takes a long shower, trying to wash his dream and the memories of Shiro away with the hot water.

He downs two cups of coffee as an attempt to rid his body of the effects from his sleepless night. He gets dressed as slowly as possibly, dreading the conversation he knows he has to have today.

 He hesitates to get in the taxi, and he stumbles giving the address. He doesn’t want to get out of the cab when it stops, wants to tell the driver to turn around and drive him states away. He doesn’t want to move up the marble steps, but his legs move anyway. By the time he makes it to the large double doors, his heart, his thoughts, and his whole body feels heavy, like the weight of the world is crushing down on him.

 He knocks on door, his heart mimicking the rapid beat. He does his best not to sigh in relief when Coran, (whom he knows as Ryou’s caretaker) opens the door instead of Shiro. He tries really hard not to look like a ghost as he’s ushered into The Castle of Lions. Each step sends sharp shocks up to his spine, like he’s walking on burning needles.

“Is Shiro here?” He hardly recognizes the sound of his own voice. He’s surprised by it. His voice is weak, but shockingly stable. He asks the question when, both to his relief and disappoint, doesn’t find his best friend. Instead he sees three people, close to his age, standing beside who he figures to be Allura. The Princess of this Castle. There’s a large, tan man in a faded yellow shirt with short, dark brown hair. A skinny guy, tan, blue eyes, brown hair, blue and gray baseball tee giving Keith a very judgmental gaze, and a much shorter pale person with thick round glasses and messy light brown hair wearing an oversized plain green sweater. Keith does a double take to him, they looks all too familiar but Keith knows that he’s mistaken, so he doesn’t dread on it.

“We’d like to know the exact same thing” the smallest one says, as their gaze all shifts over to Allura.

“Actually, I’d like to know who _you_ are” The skinny guy in the baseball tee winks at Allura, a sly grin pulling up on his lips. The Princess simply rolls her eyes at him. With each uncomfortable second that goes by, Keith feels more and more anxious. _Something isn’t right. Why isn’t Shiro Here? Something’s wrong…_

“I’m Allura, Owner of this Castle, but this isn’t about me. This about who you all are, and why you’re here” Oh _. Oh no._

“You’re here because you were all recruited for Voltron, and since you showed up I assume you’ve accepted the calling” She smiles widely, like she was so happy to have them there. Keith shakes his head. He doesn’t want to hear anything else about Voltron. He wants no part in it at all. He can’t. He just needs to find Shiro.

“Actually” Keith steps up closer, leaving the edge of the room. “I am not here for Voltron”

“Shiro told me, I thought by you showing up that meant you changed your mind?” She frowns at him.

“No, I’m here because I need to talk to Shiro”

“Keith, Pleas-“

“Hold up!” Baseball Tee guy tosses up one hand, to pause the conversation, and then he points an accusing finger at Keith. “You? You’re Keith? Keith Kogane?” He asks. Keith cocks his head, because he’s sure he’s never met this guy before.

“Uh, yeah?”

“I thought I knew that mullet!”

“It’s not a mullet!” Keith will admit, in his younger days, his hair wasn’t the best kept, and tended to resemble a mullet, but now certainly that he was older it was better kept and now just looked like ordinary long hair.

“You’re the guy who had the highest scores in the garrison training program! You were my rival!” He claims, but Keith doesn’t really recall having a rival. He knows he was the top choice for the garrison, he had the best scores on every test, and he knew a lot of people didn’t like him for that, but he doesn’t remember having any real rivalries?

“I’m sorry, who are you?”

“Lance! Lance McLain! I was right below you on every test! We were rivals, you know? ‘There’s Keith and Lance, neck and neck again!’ we battled it out in like, every section? I hated your guts!” He complains, but none of it rings a bell for Keith… He doesn’t actually remember anyone in his training class. All he cared about was getting good enough scores, for Shiro’s sake…

“Uh, sorry?” Keith offers, and the guy-Lance, just groans.

He looks like he’s about to say something, but the sound of a large explosion cuts him off. A holographic like screen pops up in the air by Allura’s computer. The Garrison campus comes into view, and Keith feels his heart drop, like it always did whenever he had to see that school.

“What’s happening”

“That’s what I was trying to get to” Allura clears her throat. “LionShadow, is currently being held by the Garrison, they want to do experiments on the Galra prosthetic” Allura reaches down for her laptop, and types out something. The scene on the screen changes. A bright room, white walls; like a hospital. In the center of the room? Shiro, strapped to a table, thrashing about, looking half-conscious and terrified as a few men in garrison lab coats stand around him. The way Shiro’s eyes widen as someone reaches for the metallic arm. That’s enough for Keith. He doesn’t want to see anything more. He doesn’t _need_ to see anything more. His blood starts to boil, and he goes into a panic. Within seconds, he’s booking it to the other side of the city. Any coherency, any logic, and any Marmora rules be damned. He’s not going to wait for Allura to give some sappy speech. He’s not waiting for those other Voltron candidates. He’s not waiting to call the blades, he’s not going to stop to plan or to think things through.  That all takes time he doesn’t have. The only thing Keith thinks about, the only thing he cares about right now, is Shiro.

 

 

Luckily, Keith knows the garrison like the back of his hand. He and Shiro were so star struck with the place back in the day, they toured it countless times. He knows Shiro’s being held in a testing lab to the far side of the campus, to the left, and all the way back. It’s a tiny room, almost like a shed. Because it was meant not to be noticed. Fortunately, Keith had noticed it.

Knowing that, Keith set off some large fire crackers. They’re meant for distraction, not destruction. Any guards outside of the shack quickly took off towards the front, which is when Keith made a break for the testing room. He kicked down the door with ease, He took out the three guards inside almost as easily. One came straight at him, he dodged and came up, and kicked the guard in the gut, and sent him stumbling into the back wall. The second guard was even easier, Keith grabbed a hold of his arm, and flipped him flat on his back. The third guy came at Keith a lot quicker and better prepared than the first two. He swings a couple punches at Keith, one of which actually scores, knocking Keith right in the mouth. It doesn’t stop him though. Nothing could possibly stop Keith right now, not as long as Shiro is in danger. The next fist that gets thrown at him, he latches onto, and twists. He yanks the guy around, locks his arm behind his back, and quickly swipes his legs out from under him, pushing the guard to the ground on his stomach. Keith stepped on his back, lightly, not enough to majorly wound him, just enough to spook him, and warn him not to move.

“Keith, what the hell are you doing here?” Keith looked up, the voice cracking down on him like a bolt of lightning.  He quickly tugs away at the black bandana that he had been using to block half his face from both the cameras, and the smoke, and turns around.

“Shiro?”

“Hey?” All the questions he has to seeing Shiro sitting up on the metal table, looking perfectly fine, flows out the window as the other three from the castle come stumbling in.

“Oi! You can’t just rush in and steal all the glory!” Lance complains, very clearly out of breath, but it goes in through one ear, and out the other. All Keith can do is stare at Shiro. His blood isn’t boiling anymore. He feels himself freeze in anger and frustration as the world around him stops, and a warm depth opens in his chest.

“You’re okay?” He chokes out, his voice shaking just as much as the rest of his body.

 Shiro nods slyly, standing up from the table. He starts to reach towards him. He takes one look at the outstretched hand, and then everything flashes before him.

“I’m fine, Keith. It was a tes-“Keith doesn’t let him finish that sentence. He knows what he’s going to say, and he doesn’t want to hear it. He turns right around on his heel, and trudges out the door. His head is spinning and facing the floor. He’d say his heart is pounding but he can’t seem to actually feel his heart in his chest. It feels more like a heavy black hole rests there instead. His stomach twists in terrible knots, and he nearly doubles over from the pain. He keeps walking though, he refuses to stop, because he knows if he stops Shiro will catch up to him, and he can’t deal with that right now. He can’t look at Shiro right now.

“Keith! Keith!” Shiro’s voice calls out for him, but it’s hazy and distorted to him. Like it’s coming through the white noise of an old busted radio. He ignores it, he ignores the ache in his body that shakes him with every step, and he keeps going till he reaches the edge of the garrison. He pulls his black bandana back up, and then books it, and just like that; he’s running away again. For the second time in two days, he’s ran away from his best friend. But this time, Shiro actually deserves it.

 

 

 He goes home. He sits on his couch in an old shirt and boxers, wraps himself up in a blanket, and shovels his mouth full of ice cream as angrily as he possibly can while in his state. The world is still spinning, his stomach still feels like it’s being jabbed at, and his hands are still shaking. Even hours later. All because Shiro tricked him. Shiro _lied_ to him. He faked it. He was never in danger. He was _okay._ But now Keith _wasn’t._

Now Keith had even more thoughts rolling around in his mind. More things to haunt him.  He went to get closure and what he got instead was a cruel reminder of how much he needs Shiro. He took one look at Shiro on that table and ran for him because he needs him. Because he doesn’t want to think about a world where Shiro isn’t there. He would do anything for Shiro _, anything._ That wasn’t a good thing anymore. All it does is complicate things even more.

“Keith!?” Comes the insistent pounding on his apartment door. _Anything._ He thinks. _Except opening the door for him_. Shiro has been knocking for the last fifteen minutes, but he refuses to acknowledge that.

“Keith! Seriously! Come on! I know you’re in there! I can hear the T.V.!” Shiro argues, continuing with his knocking. He’s been trying his best to ignore it, but if it goes on another minute, he’s going to go insane.

“Fuck off!” Keith sobs, finally giving in, and makes his way to the door, but he doesn’t open it, he just leans against it. He wants to bang his head against it until he’s in so much pain that he can’t feel anything at all anymore. This terrible ache that has spread from his chest to the entirety of his body is really starting to annoy him.

“Come on, Keith! Let me in! I’m sorry!” Shiro softly says into the door, and Keith can feel him press his back against the wood.

“I told you to fuck off!” Keith repeats himself. He knows its rude, and he knows it probably hurts Shiro. But he really does not want to see the other right now. Hearing Shiro’s voice is hard enough as it is. He really doesn’t know what’ll happen if he opens that door.

“Keith. I’m going to count down from five. Open the door”

“I’m a grown man, Shiro!” Keith complains “Counting down isn’t gonna scare me”

“5”

“It’s not going to work”

“4”

“Knock it off Shiro”

“3”

“I said ‘Go Away!’ I don’t want to talk to you right now!”

“2” Keith honestly didn’t know what Shiro would do. There’s no way he’d bust Keith’s door in, but he still doesn’t trust him.

“I am not dealing with you right now! Just leave!” Keith steps away from the door, and starts walking towards his bedroom, ready to bury himself in his bed and hide beneath his blankets, probably to never move again.

“1” The last number isn’t from outside, it’s not from the door. It’s right in Keith’s ear. Hot breath against his neck as Shiro wraps his arms tightly around Keith’s waist.  
“How the fuck?!” Keith starts to squirm, trying to get out of Shiro’s grasp, but it’s just not happening. The grip is tight and secure but gentle. It’s not hurting Keith, but it’s certainly not letting him get away. His heart, and his head pound. All he can see in his mind is flashing exclamation marks as all his senses start to go haywire at the feeling of Shiro around him. Every instinct in his body is telling him to rest and embrace Shiro’s hold, but all his common sense and his emotions are telling him to book it, and never look back.

“We need to talk” Shiro commands, before turning him to face him and hold him tighter, but it doesn’t work on Keith. That power never works on Keith. They both know that, so he doesn’t know why Shiro even tries.

“No, you need to get the fuck out of my apartment. I don’t want to talk to you right now” The warmth of Shiro’s chest against his , the feeling of his arms tightly against his back and gripping Keith. It’s strangely comforting, and that’s exactly what Keith doesn’t want right now.

“Fine. Then don’t talk. Just Listen.”

 

 

 

 

 

* * *

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Shiro feels like shit. Not surprising. He was so sure last night, he was absolutely positive that Keith would make a great Hero, and that he would be willing. He was still nervous, of course, but he really thought in the end, Keith would say yes. So, when he didn’t, when he out right rejected Shiro without giving it even a minute’s worth of thought, and then booked it, Shiro felt his heart sink. Watching Keith run from him, and leave him alone like that; it hurt. He doesn’t understand.

Then there was that stupid exorcise. That test. It was Coran and Allura’s idea, run the candidates through a simulator. See what they can do, how they think, how they work as a team. Shiro thought it was a good idea. He couldn’t see anything wrong with testing the waters. However, he didn’t think Keith would be there. He didn’t know Keith would end up looking for him too, didn’t think Keith would be watching that video. When He sat up on that table to find his friend trampling over a guard, he didn’t know what to do. The look in those pale violet eyes when he realized Shiro was okay was heartbreaking. He couldn’t figure out why Keith was there, or why he looked so upset. But when he quickly started retreating, Shiro figured it out, it all just clicked together in his mind, and he felt nauseous.

Keith thought that Shiro was dead for the last three years. _Dead_. Now they’re reconnected, Shiro is alive, okay, and Keith finds out that his friend risks his life almost daily to be the city’s Hero. Then he’s forced to think that Shiro is in danger again, forced to see Shiro afraid and hurt. He rushed to save him without even thinking about it, probably panicking, probably fearing the worst, probably thinking he might lose Shiro again. Then he finds out it’s fake. It wasn’t real. He was forced to do all that, to feel all of that, for nothing. No wonder Keith was pissed at him.

He understands why Keith doesn’t answer him, even after fifteen minutes of persistent knocking. He wouldn’t want to talk to him either, but he needs to see Keith. He needs to apologize, to explain.

So he does what Lion Shadow does best, and he phases his body right through the solid wood door of the apartment, until his feet land firmly on the plush grey carpet of the living room. He steps up right behind Keith, and wraps his arms around Keith’s waist, tightly, so he can’t run away again.

This is the method Shiro used back in high school when Keith wouldn’t tell him something. He just wraps him up in his arms, and holds him tight until he gives in, and just admits whatever he’s hiding. He’s only had to use this a couple times. The first time was after Keith got in a fight with a couple guys from Shiro’s grade.

 Now, fights weren’t exactly uncommon for Keith. But this one was different-Keith versus three guys. His opponents walked away with bumps and bruises and a lot of spilling blood and a bit of a limp. Keith didn’t walk away unscathed. He got a busted lip, and a couple harsh bruises on his sides. But that was all. The odd thing about the fight, is that he refused to tell Shiro what caused it. Keith always had pretty good reasons for getting into fights, and he usually had no problem sharing those reasons. But that day, he shut down when Shiro asked, and said ‘they were just being stupid’

After a good ten minutes of Shiro holding Keith tightly to his chest, Keith broke down and confessed that he’d overheard the guys saying some not so friendly things about Shiro’s relationship with Keith. Using some words Shiro would never repeat. Keith didn’t want to burden Shiro with the rumors, but Shiro got it out of him in the end. It pushed the boundaries of their relationship a bit, but in the end, it was good for them. It worked. Shiro hopes it still works.

“Shiro, knock it off. I’m not fifteen anymore, you can’t do this, let me go…” Keith complains, still trying to break Shiro’s hold, but it’s not working. Shiro pulls him in tighter still, burying his face in Keith’s neck.

“No. I’m sorry, Keith. Could you please calm down? Let me explain, and apologize” Shiro keeps pleading, but Keith isn’t backing down.

“Let me go!” He growls, but his thrashing is slowly halting.

“Let me explain myself!”

“No!” Keith snaps. “I don’t want to listen to you. I don’t want to hear your voice right now! I don’t want to look at you right now! Let me go!” Shiro feels like he was just punched directly in the heart. His grip slowly starts to falter just by looking into Keith’s brilliant eyes.

“Keith… I understand why you’re upset with me but please-“ Keith’s thrashing stops, but his resistance doesn’t.

“No! You don’t understand Shiro!” He barks, pushing himself away from Shiro, and whipping around to face away from him. “I’ve spent years thinking you were dead! I’ve spent years beating myself up about you! Just when I’m finally okay again, when I finally feel a bit stable, I have you back. For a split second, everything is okay! _You_ are okay! Then you tell me about Lionshadow, and about Voltron, and I have to watch that fucking Video of you at the garrison, and you make me relive it. You made me relive all the bullshit terror and heartbreak I felt the first time! For a fucking training simulator! You have no idea how that makes me feel, Shiro!” He breaks. For the first time in months, Keith really, really breaks. His eyes start to tear up, and his voice starts to leave him. His skin is hot and flushed with anger, frustration, and pain. Every bone in his body is shaking, and threatening to give in under the weight of his heavy heart. He turns back around and crashes his face into Shiro’s chest as his eyes begin to well up.

“You’re right. I don’t know exactly how that makes you feel. I have an idea though, I really do understand why you’re so hurt and so pissed. I would be too if I were you… I’m really… really sorry, Keith” Shiro’s voice is soft and in Keith’s air. It’s calm. Its warmth on Keith’s skin makes him breathe sharply, and raises the hairs on his neck.

“I need you, Shiro. I can’t lose you again…” Keith’s voice is quiet and muffled in Shiro’s chest. In the moment as Keith stops resisting and just melts into Shiro’s larger, muscular body. His arms flying up and around Shiro’s neck. He whispers something that sinks into the fabric of his shirt instead of being heard.

“You won’t, I promise…” Shiro whispers back to Keith as he buries his face in messy locks of silky black hair. “I’ll never leave you again”

“You better not” Keith sighs in a quivering breath, drawing Shiro even closer. “If you ever scare me like that again, I’m bringing you home, and locking you in here so you can never leave my side again” Shiro’s heart flips at the way Keith says ‘home,’ like the apartment belongs to both of them. Like it’s their home, together, not just Keith’s. The word lights a fire in Shiro’s stomach, sparking to life so many ideas and fantasies.

“You know, I don’t think I would complain” Shiro smiles into Keith’s neck, and they stay there for a few a minutes, just holding each other in silence.

“I’m sorry for running out on you last night” Keith runs a hand down to Shiro’s biceps. He lightly squeezes Shiro’s human arm.

“It’s alright. I understand”

“It still doesn’t make it okay. I panicked. I didn’t know what to say. So I ran.” Keith’s voice is a little shaky, like he’s still panicking and contemplating running all over again. Shiro shakes his head, and holds him a bit tighter.

“Hey, I don’t blame you. I put a lot on your plate at once, I put you on the spot, that’s on me” Keith sighs again, and tries to lie even further into Shiro. Like he’s trying to close every last gap between them, but he’s pretty sure that’s not possible.

“Come on, you’ve had a long weekend, and you have work tomorrow. You get comfortable, I’m gonna clean up your ice-cream party” Shiro starts to release Keith from his hold, but the other doesn’t budge.

“Are you going to join me?” He looks at Shiro, and there’s this hopeful spark in his eyes that Shiro doesn’t think he’ll ever be able to say no to.

“Do you want me to join you?” He wants to say yes, but he hesitates. Of course, he want’s nothing more than to hold Keith close all night, it’s practically all he’s dreamed about for the last three years, and one night is not enough to satisfy him. In all honestly, he could spend the rest of his life sleeping with Keith at night, holding him close and cuddling him, but is Keith okay with that?

“I think you still owe me from yesterday morning” Keith grins, before finally leaving Shiro’s grasp, and retreating to his bedroom. He doesn’t wait or close the door, the second he’s through the doorway, he start’s pulling off his shirt. The glimpse of smooth skin and lean muscles kicks Shiro into gear and lights something in his chest. He rushes to pick up the tiny mess in Keith’s living room.

It takes him no longer than two minutes to meet Keith in the bedroom.

 

“Do you have any other spare clothes? At least sweatpants, I can sleep in this shirt” Keith is lying on top of the covers staring at the ceiling with his torso bare and exposed.

“Correct me if I’m wrong, but I don’t remember you ever wearing a shirt to bed?” Keith turns and smirks. It catches Shiro off guard. He’s right. Shiro really doesn’t like to sleep with a shirt. He finds it uncomfortable. However, what’s more uncomfortable to him is being half naked in front of Keith. Keith doesn’t seem to care about exposing skin, but Shiro… Shiro isn’t ready for that.

It’s not that he’s terribly self-conscious. That’s not quite the case here. Shiro never really minded showing off his body before, especially not to his close friend. Now it’s different.  Shiro is still fit, in fact, he’s more so now then when he was back in high school. What’s new now is the scars. There’s terrible scarring around his right bicep, where metal attaches to human flesh. There’s also numerous torture and battle scars from his time with the Galra, all over his chest and his back. Some of them are pretty nasty, most of them didn’t heal quite right, but they don’t actually bother him that much. What bothers him is the idea of Keith seeing them. The idea of letting Keith see all his scars, letting his see the physical proof of all that Shrio’s been through doesn’t seem right. Especially not right now.

“Shiro?” Keith is suddenly in front of him, one hand teaching up to his chest. When did he leave the bed?

“Shiro? You’re spacing out?” He repeats, his voice is soft, and warm, and a bit concerned as he squeezes Shiro’s bicep.

“Sorry” Shiro mutters, he blinks, like he’s trying to clear his mind, trying to un-see the images in his head. He looks down at Keith, whose staring up at him with a tight frown on his lips.

“Are you okay?” He asks, and Shiro does his best to give him a reassuring smile. The last thing he needs right now is to make Keith worry about him. Keith has been through enough lately. He doesn’t need to make it worse.

“Shiro? Why do you wear a shirt to bed now?” The smile doesn’t seem to help, in fact, it seems to have the opposite effect, and makes Keith’s worry and suspicion grow.

“It’s nothing” Shiro dismisses it. Keith pulls his hand away, and crosses his arms over his chest.

“Shiro… I know when you’re lying…” Keith sighs.

“Keith…” Keith’s scowl softens a bit, before nodding his head.

“Fine. I’ll drop it for now. Your clothes are in the bottom drawer” Keith points to the dresser behind Shiro. He quickly goes to it, thankful that Keith was willing to drop his question, and starts rummaging through the correct draw. He finds a lot of his old clothes. A couple pairs of sweats, some old t-shirts, and a couple hoodies. He steals a pair of the sweats, and quickly kicks off his shoes, socks and pants to pull on the sweats on quickly. He places his dirty clothes in a neatly folded pile on top of the dresser, and then he turns the light off, and joins Keith, who has already tucked himself in, and is laying on his side facing away. He’s not asleep though, Shiro can hear it in his breathing. He climbs in behind him, and he lays on his back, staring up at the ceiling, hands behind his head. He doesn’t really know what to do with himself. He’s not sure if Keith is still okay with him holding him, like he did two nights ago. He contemplates the risk for a minute, but before he can decide, Keith lets out a loud groan in annoyance, and flips himself over so he’s facing Shiro. He pulls himself right up into Shiro’s side, and lays his head down on his chest, and tosses his arm across Shiro’s torso, while tangling one leg in front of his waist, and the other intertwining with Shiro’s.

Shiro’s best response is to let out a sigh, and wrap his arms around Keith in return.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hope everyone had some happy holidays, and a good new years! I hope you liked this chapter! It was not easy to write, Keiths emotions were complicated to get down. Huge shout out to my Beta, Jacob, I wouldnt have been able to do this without them!


	6. Worth It

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Shiro doesn’t sleep. He’s too worried. Worried about Keith, worried about what he might say.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Keiths mad, Shiro's confused, they're both soft, and it's time for Keith to make the big decision!

Sleeping in Shiro’s arms was like a blessing. It was the first sign of sunlight in an endless year or rain. A tiny bit of calm and happiness before the real shit storm rolled in. Keith is well aware of this. It was the glue of their relationship back in high school. It’s an addiction for him. Something he needs, and struggles with out. He’s gone through years sleeping alone, and now that he has it back, he doesn’t ever want to lose it again. Now that he remembers what it’s like, he realizes how lonely he’s been since the accident. Sleeping in Shiro’s arms, is without a doubt, Keiths favorite thing on earth.

Which is why it hurts so much every time he wakes up somehow alone again. He should still be in Shiro’s hold right now. Shiro should still be in bed with him, sound asleep, and clinging to him like a teddy bear, not wanting to wake up, just like he used to, but he’s not. He’s not in the bed, he’s not in the room, he’s not even in the apartment. He’s gone, and in his place, is a simple note: ‘ _Keith, had to take care of some stuff at home, I’ll call you later’,_ that’s it. That’s all he gets to explain the painful absence of familiar warmth in his bed, and boy, is he not happy about it.

When Keith’s alarm clock goes off early in the morning, and he opens his eyes to face that stupid sticky-note instead of Shiro’s smile, he can feel a fire lighting into his stomach, growing all the way up to his heart. He kicks off his blankets with an angry grumble, grabbing at the note. He crumples it, and tosses it to the ground on his way to the bathroom. He takes a long, hot shower like he does every time he has to face Lion shadow. Like he’s trying to wash it, and all the emotions away. But no amount of boiling water or cinnamon body wash seems to get the warm feeling or scent of Shiro off of him this time.

After a while, he gives up, and decides to get on with his day. Moving on from Shiro is going to be harder then moving on from Lion Shadow, because it’s not the same. Every time he faces Lion Shadow, he never really has to face him. He knows it’s Shiro behind the mask. But he doesn’t have to see his face, he doesn’t have to look into his eyes or hear his voice. When he faces Lion Shadow, he can pretend they’re strangers. He can act like there is nothing there, like there’s no emotions to wash away, and he can go on like it never happened because that’s what his day life demands. He can’t do that with Shiro. It’s the exact opposite with Shiro. He’s just going to have to deal with that. He has to move on with his day, regardless of the cloud of memories and emotions hanging over him. He forces himself to eat a bit of breakfast, even though his stomach is twisted up in knots. He gets dressed in his usual black jeans, and red docs, and a black sweater. He grabs his bag, hoping everything he needs for the day is still in there, and takes off for the school. By the time he gets there, he is a bit later then usual, and many of his kids are already waiting at the class for him. Including one little Ryou Shirogane, whom he can’t bring himself to look in the eye.

“Good Morning” Keith greets as he unlocks the classroom door, propping it open to let all the students shuffle in, away from the cold.

“Good Morning, Mr. K!” Most of them greet him happily. The last in line, of course, just so happens to be the miniature Shirogane.

“Hi, Mr. K!” He greets, a big smile on his face. Keith could never resist a Shirogane smile.

“Good Morning, Ryou” He greets back, gently leading the kid inside, eager to get away from the cold himself.

“Good Morning!” Ryou returns the greeting, shoving his back pack into his assigned cubby, after removing his pencil pouch. He seems unusually cheery this morning, but Keith doesn’t dare ask why.

“You’re not going to need your pencil pouch today, Ryou, We are going to watch a movie” Keith grins. One of the best parts about his job, is that whenever he was extra tired, and didn’t really feel like working, he could just play movies for his students, instead of calling out sick. Ryou cheered a bit in excitement, shoving his pencils back into his bag, before bolting off to his seat. While waiting for the rest of the kids to file in, Keith goes through his desk and cabinets, looking for movies. He finds a couple different ones. Some educational. Some just for fun. The movies take up all their class time. The kids love it. During their lunch and break, Keith goes to sit outside, on the bench right out side of the class room, hoping the fresh air would do him good.

Through out the day, He hears little rumors that Ryou has unintentionally spread. Not particularly bad ones, of course… But interesting ones, about his weekend. Ryou apparently gabbed to all his friends on the playground that Mr. K and his uncle Takashi are best friends, and that he to go to Mr. K’s house and eat pizza and ice cream and watch movies and spend the night. And that Mr. K spent all morning with him Saturday, and took him to the park and played with him. Ryous uncle Takashi apparently also said that ‘Mr. K will be around a lot more’, these rumors go from Ryous friends, to their parents at after school pick-up that day, who start asking Keith about it.

“We went to school together” Keith tells one curious mother, the one that’s been not so subtly hitting on him the last couple of weeks. “We were best friends in high-school, but we got separated when he went off to college” It’s not a complete lie, so it comes easily, and naturally. Even with Little Ryou holding on tightly to his hand, and staring up at him with that excited grin.

“We spent the weekend catching up. I watched Ryou for a bit when he had to take care for something at work. I suppose he meant he planned to catch up more when he told Ryou I’d be around often” He’s talking, but his thoughts aren’t really in it. Instead, they’re at that conversation. He wants to know what Shiro was talking about with his nephew that would make him promise such a thing.

“You sound like you don’t have the same plans” Shiro’s voice sends a bolt of lightning right down his spine, And straight to his heart. His eyes snap away from the mother, and to the parking lot, where Shiro is currently approaching from. Behind him, Keith can see the black SUV Coran usually drives.

“Where’s Coran?” is the first thing Keith thinks to respond with.

“At home. Thought I’d give him a break” Shiro shrugs as he steps up onto the side walk, right in front of Keith, who gives him a doubtful look. It’s a good few months into the school year, and Shiro has never dropped off, or picked up Ryou. Which means the only reason he’s here now, has to be because of Keith.

“What? Can’t pick up my own Nephew?” He grins innocently at Keith, holding his hand out to Ryou, who doesn’t budge from Keith.

“It’d be a first” Keith can’t help the eyeroll, and Shiro very quickly catches it.

“Are you mad at me?” Shiro’s smile falters, and Keith lips pucker into a tight line when Ryou squeezes his hand, reminding him that he’s at the school still. He’s still at work. He has kids to dismiss still.

“Im not doing this right now” He shakes his head at Shiro, and steps away. Ryou, for whatever reason, follows him.

“Fine, I’ll call you later, come on Ryou, let’s go home” Shiro sighs in defeat, and holds his hand out. Ryou looks at his uncle’s hand for a split second, and then shakes his head.

“I want to stay with Mr. K” He declares. Keith looks down at him, wondering what the hell is going on in the little monster’s head, and Shiro himself looks between the two of them, before once again giving in to defeat.

 

 

 

* * *

 

 

 

 

 

“Fine, We’ll wait for Mr. K” Shiro settles, looking down at his Nephew with a strained smile, trying to figure out what the little devil is doing. Shiro waits, and watches as Keith completely ignores him, ushering around other little kids to their assigned guardians, all while Ryou hangs onto his arm. Shiro stays the whole time, watching slowly as all the kids start to leave with their parents. The whole time he waits, He tries to think of any possible reason for Keith to be mad at him, but he can’t seem to settle on an idea. If anything, with the previous night, He thought Keith would be happy to see him.

He waits for Keith and Ryou for a good twenty minutes, and once the last kid leaves, Keith leads Ryou back to Shiro.

“Alright, Ryou” Keith sighs. “It’s time for you to go home, okay? I’ll see you tomorrow” Keith smiles down at him, but Ryou still refuses to budge.

“I want to stay with Mr. K” He repeats his earlier demand. Both Keith and Shiro sigh.

“Ryou, you need to go home” Keith kneels down to his height, and frowns at him.

“Then come home with us” Keith eyes go wide at the request, and he glances up at Shiro quickly, with frightened eyes, that flash with anger, before looking back at Ryou softly.

“I don’t think that’s a good idea, buddy” Keith shakes his head, and Ryou whips around to face his uncle.

“What did you do?” He asks Shiro, which makes him tense up. He puts his hands up in mock surrender.

“I don’t know what I did” He pleads, moving his gaze over to Keith as he lowers his arms. “But I’d like to know. Please, Keith. I think we need to talk?” Shiro offers. This might actually work for him. Ryou will get to spend more time with his teacher, Shiro gets more time with Keith, and the opportunity to figure out what he did to piss him off.

“Fine, let’s get you home, Ryou.” Is Keiths way of agreeing. He waits for Shiro to say nothing, he just drags the excited little boy over to the car.

 

 

 

 

 

“This place is bigger then I thought it would be…” After a painfully silent car ride, and about ten minutes of walking around The Castle of Lions, Shiro finally convinces Ryou to leave him and Keith alone to talk about ‘grown up stuff’, and it takes another five minutes to get Keith to talk.

“It’s not called ‘The Castle’ for nothing” Shiro tries his hand at a light-hearted joke, just to ease the mood, but it doesn’t seem to work. Keith doesn’t laugh, he doesn’t even smile, or look at Shiro. He just keeps walking down the long hallway.

“Keith” Shiro sighs, and stops moving, making Keith halt as well. _At least he stopped for me…_ “Why are you mad at me?” He really can’t figure it out. He thinks maybe it’s because he came to his work, but he did leave a note saying he’d call later. Granted he didn’t specify that he meant by calling on Keith, he’d be visiting.  That might have upset him, but Keith seems to mad for that. He seems hurt and mad. That goes beyond the shock of a surprise visit. _So, what did I do?_

“Seriously?” Keith turns to face Shiro, placing his hands on his hips, that tight frown on his lips still present.

“Im sorry for whatever I did?” Shiro tries, but Keith shakes his head.

“You don’t mean it if you don’t know what you did” He scoffs, and turns to start walking away, but Shiro is very quick to grab onto his hand, and pull him back.

“You know I would never intentionally do anything to upset you” He pulls Keith towards him, but it’s not like he’s forcing it. Keith comes to him with ease. He still gives Shiro a harsh glare.

“I know that, but you sure are good at doing it by accident”

“Whatever it was, It really was an accident…” Shiro sighs again, his mind working a hundred miles per hours to find a way to fix this. What usually works to settle things between them?

“Look, I know you probably had a long day, a nap sounds pretty good right now to me. So, how about we go to my room, and we can lay down until Coran calls us for dinner?” Sleeping. That always calmed them down. It was their magic cure back in high school. Sleeping together at night is what kept their relationship alive and thriving, even when they got too busy to actually interact during the day. There wasn’t a bad emotion or time that couldn’t be solved by a short nap in eachother arms. Surely that still worked?

“Why? So you can just up and leave the second I shut my eyes?” Keith rolls his eyes, taking a step backwards, and suddenly everything clicks in Shiro’s mind. Of course, sleeping together isn’t going to help the situation, because that’s why Keith’s mad in the first place. _‘You not being in bed is what woke me up’_ , Keiths words from the other morning ring out in his thoughts.

“Oh” Keith’s upset with him because Shiro keeps leaving before Keith wakes up. They’ve gotten to spend the night together twice, and both times, Shiro had to leave him early in the morning. They didn’t get to wake up together like they used to. Keiths mad because Shiro left him alone. He made him wake up alone…

“Oh” Shiro repeats, looking at Keith a bit dumbfounded. He doesn’t really know what to say. It’s not like he wants to leave Keith. It’s not like he wanted to go. The last thing Shiro wanted to wake up to this morning was a phone call from Allura telling him he has to come home. The last thing he wanted to do this morning was pry his arms off of Keith. But his job demanded him.

“Keith” He reaches out again, placing a hand on Keiths shoulder. “I didn’t want to leave”

“and yet you keep leaving me” Something tells Shiro that Keith means more then just the two mornings.

“If it was up to me, we would both still be in that bed” Shiro tries to argue, because it’s true. If Shiro really had it his way, he would have never left Saturday morning, and would have instead stayed there all weekend, refusing to leave Keiths side. If he had it his way, he’d never leave Keiths side again.

“You said there was something we needed to talk about?” Keith quickly changes the subject, averting his gaze off to the side. Shiro decides to drop it, knowing Keith isn’t going to give in so quickly.

“I think you know what I want to talk about”

“Voltron?” Keith groans, and Shiro nods his head.

“Look, I understand now why you don’t like the idea of me being Lion Shadow, or being a part of Voltron, but I can’t just stop. The City needs me. Galaxy city needs Voltron” He knows Keith doesn’t like it, he knows he doesn’t agree, but he can’t give up on it. He’s not going to like it, but Shiro’s going to fight for it.

“and I think you should be apart of that. I know you, Keith. I know what you’re capable of. I know you’ll make a great hero. I know you can do this. I want you, and I need you, to do this with me. There’s no one else I’d rather have by my side, No one I could trust more. Please, Keith. I need you with me”

“Can I…” Keith hesitates for a moment. “Can I have the night to think about it? I think… I think I really need to think about this”

“Of course!” He’ll take it. It’s not solid, but it’s good enough. He didn’t really expect Keith to decide on the spot anyway. It’s a big decision

“Do you want to spend the night here? We don’t have any of the guest rooms ready, but you can stay with me. Im sure Ryou would love that. And Corans making dinner as we speak. His cooking isn’t the best, but it’s not the worst either, it just takes some getting used to.”  Shiro’s offer comes out before he can really stop himself. He’s just so excited that he now has a chance. To know that Keiths willing to consider it, to know it’s a possibility, he feels so giddy.

“Actually…Shiro, I think it would be better if I went home for the night… I need to think about this alone…” Keiths voice is so soft and careful.

“Oh” Shiro’s smile falls, and he nods his head in understanding. “Right. I understand. Do you want me to drive you home?” an excuse. Just a way to spend a few more minutes together. It fails.

“I think we both know I don’t really need a car to get home” Shiro nods again. Of course, Keith doesn’t actually need a car to get home. He’s just as fast, all on his own. Although, Keiths never been a fan of using his powers a lot.

“Okay then… Good night, I guess?” Each word of his sentence is a sharp pang in his heart. Is it going to be like this every time he has to separate from Keith? He never wants to have to say goodbye to Keith, ever again. He wants to keep Keith by his side, as close as he can, for as long as he can.

“Good Night, Shiro”

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Shiro doesn’t sleep. He’s too worried. Worried about Keith, worried about what he might say. It’s all he can think about, all night. When dawn breaks, Shiro leaves his room in favor of the training deck. He takes all his frustration and worry out on a training simulation combat bot. He runs laps around the deck, he triples his usual workout routine. He doesn’t stop until Allura has to power down the whole training room, just to get him to leave. He’s not too happy about that. Working out, the constant push on his body, it was the only think keeping his mind off the upcoming decision.

 He was nervous, alright. Downright terrified. He knows this talk, this decision Keith is about to make, is going to be make a major change in their relationship. They’re either going to have to take a step back in their recently re-united friendship, which would absolutely kill Shiro, or they’re going to take a step forward, and become partners. Not the kind of partners Shiro would love to be-the kind that keeps him up at night, and makes him smile-but the crime fighting kind. The Hero kind. If Keith says yes, he won’t be just a best friend anymore, he’ll be his teammate, and officially his right-hand man. It would bring them closer. That’s what Shiro’s hoping for, anyway. Knowing this decision is coming, and knowing how much of an impact it’s going to have on them, well it shakes him down to his core. He’s not ready to lose Keith again, and Keith isn’t ready to lose Shiro. That’s exactly why Shiro wants Keith to join Voltron, and why Keith wants to avoid it. Its like a stalemate. A very frustrating, frightening stale-mate. With each passing minute, the words that ultimately changes their friendship forever draws closer and closer. Shiro isn’t sure if he wants to ignore it for as long as possible, or jump to it already.

When Allura kicks him out of the training deck, she sends Coran to grab him, and drag him into the dining room for a proper meal. Coran claims it’s some nutritional, protein packed soup that’ll really kick Shiro into gear, and help keep him in tip-top fighting shape for the rise of Voltron. Shiro’s pretty sure it’s lemon scented green slime from the dollar store that tastes like mushed carrots. It’s probably the worst thing Coran has ever tried to feed him. He can’t manage any more than two spoonful’s, and then he hastily dismisses himself to his room. An hour long hot shower strips his body off all the sweat and anxieties. The warm, soothing feeling the water leaves on his body after he gets out is enough to let him crawl into his bed, and get in a good hour and a half nap.

In his dreams, Shiro sees Keith. He sees his smile, and he sees him laughing. He sees him nervously play with a couple stray hands of his hair. Shiro wants to reach out and run his hands through that hair. He wants to sit there forever, just listening to Keith laugh, and watch him smile. It’s one of his favorite sights. But then He sees the clock behind Keith, and Shiro jolts awake, and checks his own alarm clock for the time. He’s out of bed in seconds, quickly scrambling across the room for his pants and a t-shirt. His boots take a minute to tug on and lace up. He runs a hand through his hair as he makes his way to the bathroom, grabbing for the deodorant and the cologne. Once he knows he’s decent enough, he makes sure he has his keys, and his wallet, and he takes off for the door. _Can’t be late, can’t be late_. He scolds himself. He doesn’t like speeding, but he also doesn’t like being late.

Thankfully, however, he’s not. He’s the perfect amount of late. He pulls into Ryou’s school to find most of the other parents and students already gone, leaving just Keith, Ryou, and three other students standing out front in the parking lot. Shiro parks as close as possible, and waits. He waits until the last kid is leaving, and Keith is left there still holding Ryou’s hand, waiting for him.

“All my kids’ parents think we’re dating now” Keith is already at the car, opening up the back to help little Ryou into his seat.

“Is that so?” Shiro tries to hide his smile, but he fails. Keith clicks his tongue as he goes around to get in the passenger seat.

“Between Ryou’s talking, and your show yesterday, yes. Today I had five parents ask me if I was dating ‘Ryou’s uncle” Shiro can’t help but chuckle a bit as he pulls out of the school parking lot.

“Is that a bad thing?” Little Ryou asks from the back seat, Drawing both Shiro and Keith’s attention.

“Well, no…” Keith hesitates, glancing in Shiro’s direction, who is trying his best to keep his eyes on the road.

“At least they’re not hitting on you now” Shiro jokes, and Keith gives a small laugh.

“That’s a fair point” It was that easy. The mood was that simple, that natural. They joked and talked normally all the way to a restaurant.

 At dinner, they probably looked like a domestic couple with their adopted son. The waitress, and the people sitting behind them certainly seemed to think so, judging by the looks they were giving. Neither seemed to care, or comment. They just delighted to have each other’s company. They took turns sharing their day. Ryou bragged about winning handball during his break, Keith talked about the lessons he had planned for tomorrow, Shiro complained about the weird concoction Coran tried to convince him was edible food. It was simple. It was nice.

 

 

 With Ryou suddenly sound asleep in the back of the car, the ride to The Castle of Lions was quiet, and dreadful. Once there, they worked together to get Ryou out, and up to his room. They tucked him into bed together. Shiro doesn’t miss the warm smile on Keith’s lips when Ryou sleepily tells him ‘Good Night’. They leave him to get a good night’s sleep, and Shiro decides to officially show Keith around the castle. He shows him the dining room, the kitchen, the ball room, the living room, the library, the garage, the indoor pool, and the training deck. Keith seems to really love the idea behind the training deck. He lights up with curiosity and interest when Shiro talks about the training simulations, the fighter bot, and the invisible maze. Eventually, however, Shiro runs out of things to talk about, and places to show Keith.

“And, this is my room” Is where they end up. Shiro pushes open the door to his plain, basic room. He shuts the door as Keith makes his way to the bed, and carefully sits down.

“It’s a nice room” Keith’s comment is dull, to say the least. It means nothing. It’s just sound he tosses out into the air to break the silence. Shiro only nods his head to it.

“So…” Shiro attempts to start, but he doesn’t really know what to say. He’s starting to be too afraid to ask.

“Yes”

 

 

 

 

* * *

 

 

 

 

 

 

Keith wants to say he did a lot of thinking. He wants to say he sat up all night weighing the pros and cons of each side, fighting with his thoughts and emotions to settle on something. But he didn’t. He didn’t spend a single second to think things through. He already had an answer. He got his answer yesterday, the second that video screen popped up, making him think Takashi Shirogane was in serious trouble. He needed no other reason than that. He had an answer. He just needed to fight to give it. The Blade of Marmora really didn’t like it. But he fought for it. He argued with the Blade leader that Voltron could be a powerful ally, once they had someone on the inside. He argued that it would also broaden their information and power range against The Galra. The Blade didn’t really buy it that much. But after hours of arguing and begging, they gave him a deal.

“Yes” Keith says, a smile tugging up on his lips as Shiro stares down at him in confusion. “That’s my answer. I’ll join Voltron” Shiro’s face goes blank for a split second, before completely lighting up. That huge, classic, Shirogane smile appears on his lips as he yanks Keith up into a tight hug.

“Hold on there” Keith steps on the breaks, He can’t let Shiro get too excited yet. Shiro’s grip loosens, and he shifts, and looks at Keith… It’s insane how quickly Shiro’s mood can change, just with a few words from Keith.

“I’m going to make some things clear, right now”

Shiro nods his head.

“Okay, what is it?”

“First of all, I need you to know that I am only joining for you. I’m not joining to be a hero or anything like that. I’m joining to keep an eye on you. I don’t trust you not to die on me again, the only way I can make sure you’re safe, is if I’m right there to watch your back. I’m also doing it for The Galra. I want to rip them to shreds for what they did to you” Shiro smiles at him so warmly it’s impossible to not smile back.

“And I have three conditions for joining: One. I am not living here. This place is nice and all, but I love my apartment, and I worked hard for it. I am not paying the bills there for nothing either.” Shiro nods slowly, showing that he agrees to the condition. Keith holds up two fingers.  

“Two. I am not quitting my day job. I love my job, I had to put in a lot of work to get It, and I am not giving it up. After everything, it helps me feel normal, and I need that. Besides, I think Ryou would throw a fit if I stopped being his teacher” Keith tries to toss a tiny joke in there, just to keep the mood on the lighter side. Shiro hesitates, but nods in agreement.

“Okay, what’s the third one?”

“Three” Keith continues, wrapping his arms around Shiro to return the tight hug from earlier.

“Three is that next time you leave me alone in bed without at least waking me up to say goodbye and tell me why you’re leaving; Imma kick your ass” Shiro chuckles, it’s a fond, glorious sound as he reciprocates the hug, burying his face in Keith’s neck. Warm breath tickling his skin, and sending a strange sense of peace over Keith.

“I am okay with that” Shiro whispers, and that’s all Keith needed to hear.

That’s all he needed to hear, to make it all worth it. He went through a lot, jumped through a lot of hoops, just for this, and to hear that smile in Shiro’s voice, to feel his arms around him like this, he knows it’s all worth it.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So in my original outline, this chapter was supposed to be like, Hella angsty, so uh... I don't know what happened. Things got kind of fluffy. Oh well.   
> I hope you guys liked it!


	7. Lions

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> "Each Lion has their own personality, which should correspond with yours, but they can disregard you. The Lion will choose whether or not you are a worthy paladin”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Some soft cuddles, some cute Ryou, and some serious talk about The Lions. Enjoy!

For someone who got so upset over not being able to wake up still in Shiro’s arms before, he has no right to regret it so much now. Now that he’s actually had the privilege of sharing the morning with his best friend, he seriously wishes he could take it back. He knows now that he was lucky those last two times. Ignorance really is bliss, because Keith had no idea how hard this was going to be.

The first thing Keith saw when he woke up was the pale gray of Shiro’s pajama shirt. The first thing he heard was the steady heartbeat drumming away in the chest beneath his head. The first thing he feels is pure comfort, followed by anxious need. The first thing he does is shuffle closer to Shiro, as close as possible, before making the terrible mistake of shifting his head to look at the still sleeping giant.

Shiro’s head is slightly turned to the side, facing Keith, like he was nuzzling his face into Keith’s hair at some point. His eyes are gently closed, his face is relaxed, and his cheeks look pink and warm. His lips are slightly parted as he breaths softly. The second Keith looks up at him, he’s hit with the sudden, strong urge to kiss those lips. He wants to kiss Shiro so badly. Wants to kiss his lips, his forehead, his flushed checks, his jaw. He wants to feel the heat of Shiro’s skin beneath his lips, wants to press his mouth to his pulse. He doesn’t really get it, but for some reason, seeing Shiro so relaxed and peaceful sends his heart into over drive.

For a second, he thinks about it. He stares at Shiro’s lips, looking so soft, plush, and rosy, and he almost goes for it. He thinks to himself ‘What’s the worst that could happen?’ and just as quickly he realizes that there’s a lot could go wrong. For starters, Shiro might not like it. Shiro might not like him that way. Shiro might not be into that. He doesn’t know. He’s almost positive Shiro liked him, or at least found him attractive back in high school. But does he still? Would he even like Keith like that? Would he even be okay with that? They’re already an unlikely pair of friends. Would they even work like that? Shiro’s handled Keith at some of his worst moments, but that was when Keith was a teenager. He’s an adult now. He’s got different issues, more problems, more struggles. Would Shiro still be able to handle that? Would he want to handle that? Keith’s technically a mess. On the surface he looks pretty fine and steady but on the inside Keith’s an emotional volcano, just waiting to erupt. Would Shiro even be willing to put up with that? What if he rejects Keith and it ruins their whole friendship? Keith just got Shiro back, he can’t risk losing him.

His heart starts to race even faster as worry after worry starts to weigh down on his thoughts. He huffs in annoyance at his stupid anxieties, and tries to shove them all away. He moves his head back down to burry it in Shiro’s shoulder for safe keeping. He focuses solely on Shiro’s warmth, on his breath, on his heartbeat. He focuses on the fact that Shiro is alive, well, and with him again. He has his friend back. That’s all that matters. For the time being, Keith is just going to have to kick his anxieties to the curb, and stomp down his feelings. Having Shiro is more important. Just having him here is more then enough, and he’s already had to fight just for this little bit. He’s not going to push for more, he can’t, he’s just going to have to be content with the way there are now, whatever this maybe, it’s good enough for now.

Shiro’s not making that very easy though. The second Keith makes his mental decision, Shiro wakes up. He wakes up with a tiny sigh, and a smile on his face. Keith can’t even see him but he can see that smile. So soft and so gentle. He just knows it’s there. Shiro’s arms around him tighten, one hand slowly rubbing Keith’s shoulder in a soothing gesture. The tiny circles Shiro’s thumb is drawing against his pale skin has Keith absolutely melting. He presses into the touch, and with that, and a little yawn, he alerts the other to his conscious state.

“Good Morning” His voice Is quite and riddled with the grog that typically accompanies having just woken up.

“Morning” Keith responds, not daring to look up. He doesn’t think he could be so bold twice. If he does that again, he’ll be looking directly into Shiro’s eyes this time, and there’s no way he’d have the same self-control he did before.

“I’m still here” He whispers, the words getting lost into the mess of Keith’s matted black hair. Shiro sounds so proud of himself, so happy. It makes Keith smile.

“Good” Is the only thing he manages to whisper back, but he does clutch at Shiro’s shirt a bit, balling  a bit of the fabric up in his fist. Shiro seems to understand the gesture, and he squeezes Keith to him for a split second, before relaxing his grip. It’s silent for a minute, and Keith feels Shiro shift his head to look at his alarm clock.

“Do you always get up this early?” He asks, and Keith nods. He can’t see the clock, he can’t see anything but Shiro, but he knows the time, it’s probably somewhere after 5am. Back at his apartment, his own alarm clock is probably blaring, telling him to get up and get ready. His body seems to know that by now, so whether or not he can actually hear the alarm, his body becomes pert and aware at this time, every day, whether he actually has to get up or not. A cruel part of muscle memory, he assumes.

“I am usually on my way to the school by 6:30” He admits, and Shiro groans in annoyance for him.

“I am so sorry” He exaggerates, making it sound like it’s some sort of deep, painful tragedy to be up this early every day. Keith decides not to mention that he’s usually awake long before his alarm goes off, having never gone to sleep in the first place.

“You get used to it” is what he settles on answering with. His smile still holding strong as Shiro still delicately rubs Circles into his shoulder. Chasing away any knots his muscles had made there.

“How about today, you call out?” Shiro suggests, and instantly rushes to continue when he feels Keith tense beneath his hand. “I think you could used a bit of extra sleep for once, and I think we should use the day to talk about” Shiro hesitates. _Talk about us_ , Keith thinks. But that’s a conversation he doesn’t want to have. “Talk about Voltron, and The Galra, and our plan” Shiro finishes, and Keith grimaces, because that’s another conversation he doesn’t want to have, but at this point, that talk is going to be a whole lot safer then the topic he was thinking about.

“I’ve never had to call out sick before” Keith grumbles, not too happy with the idea of ruining his perfect record. Keith’s got discipline issues. They both know that, that’s never really been a secret. That’s part of a reason he likes his job so much. He has to follow the school curriculum, but other then that, it’s up to him. He plans his lessons, he sets the pace, he choses the activities. He gets to impute his own style and creativity. He has to meet a certain end goal, sure, but he can get there however he likes, so long as he meets that goal. Keith likes his job, and he doesn’t want to do anything to fuck it up.

He does have a certain amount of sick days he can use up each year, and so far he hasn’t touched those. And he won’t get be getting in trouble, because both the principle of his school, and the superintendent for their school district, happen to be retired Marmora agents. It’s a long story, but basically, when an Agent is no longer useful in the operating field, The Blade usually sends them to a desk job, somewhere they can hide in plain sight, and be a great help in doing paperwork like fake documents, passports, travel tickets, housing, and job security. The Blades take their secret identities very serious. They’ve got one of their oldest members leading the school district, and another as a principle. Keith isn’t the only blade to disguise himself as a teacher during the day, not by a long shot. A lot of members work as teachers, coaches, janitors, security guards, and bus drivers. It’s easy for them to get in, the pay is decent, it comes with health care and insurance, the sick days that are offered to them come in handy, the payed vacation time they get throughout the year for school breaks is great, and it hides them in plain sight. No one expects Rebels and assassins to spend their day with a bunch of children. It’s a great gig for them. Most Blade missions are done at night anyway.

So Keith knows if he calls in sick, his principle will understand, and let him off the hook. But he’s still doesn’t really like the idea.

“If you call out now, we can stay in bed for a couple more hours, but if you want to go, you’d probably have to get up now” Shiro glances at his clock again, and the second those words leave his mouth, Keith is rolling away from Shiro to lean off his bed, looking around for the pant’s he disregarded last night. He hoists them up, and digs around in the pocket for his cellphone. Shiro chuckles at him, but he ignores it. He quickly calls, and let’s them know he won’t be there, but he will send someone in with his lesson plans, and then he hangs up. He figures he can just give Ryou his folder, and hope the kid actually gives it to the substitute. Ryou might destroy it, knowing Keith won’t be there to teach it to him. Ryou has always actually liked his teacher, but that’s intensified over the last few days. He might throw a fit if Ryou knows he won’t be in class with him.

He’s right, of course. Keith in Shiro lie down together in silence for another solid hour and a half before Ryou barges through the door, and jumps onto the bed with them, directly on top of them. He seems pretty delighted to find Keith there. He’s not so delighted when they start getting him ready for school, and Keith has to tell him he’s going to be absent.

“But why?” Ryou complains, refusing to move from his bed to go eat breakfast with them.

“Keith has to stay here with me and talk about grown up stuff” Shiro tries to console his nephew, but it doesn’t really work.

“Then I want to stay too” Keith kneels in front of Ryou, and smiles at him.

“Sorry buddy, but you have to go. Think of it this way though, I’ll be here when you get home, and we can hang out then. I’ll even help you with your homework” Keith jokes, which does earn him a tiny smile, from both Shiroganes.

“Promise?” Ryou sticks his little pinky figure out, and Keith wraps his own around it.

“Promise” Ryou grins.

Keith walks over to his bag and gets the file, before handing it to Ryou

“Yeah, I need you to get that to the substitute for me, okay? It’s really important, and you’re the only one I trust to do it, okay? So be careful with it. Don’t lose it, and make sure they get it right away” Keith instructs, and Ryou nods his head with excitement and determination.

“Okay!” He agrees. He rushes to put in his own little school bag for safe keeping. Keith smiles. He and Shiro finally get Ryou to go out and eat breakfast.

“You’re really good with him” Shiro leans over and whispers to Keith. Keith grins in response.

“I’d sure hope so. I’m his teacher, I spend about six hours a day with him, five days a week. Add last weekend to the mix, and I’d say I know him pretty well by now” Keith smile is victorious, a signal of pride for getting Ryou to eat his fruit when Shiro couldn’t.

“Or he just hates you” Keith jokes, nudging Shiro with his elbow. Shiro chuckles lightly.

“You’re right. He hates me. He’d much rather have you as his parent. I’ll switch ownership over to you immediately” Shiro continues the joke, causing Keith to snort loudly, breaking the quite tone of their conversation. Shiro grins, absolutely reveling in the sound of Keith’s laughter.

Allura calls in the other members of Voltron, while Shiro and Keith say goodbye to Ryou before Coran takes him to school. Keith double checks that Ryou has the file, and Ryou shows it to him proudly. When he says goodbye, he’s surprised to get a big hug, just like the one Shiro gets. It shocks him a bit, but he smiles none the less, and returns the hug, before sending Ryou on his way.

Shiro and Keith change for the day. Keith tugs on his black jeans from the previous day, and his red docs. He steals one of Shiro’s plain black t-shirts, and tosses his own red leather jacket over it. He stores his shirt from yesterday in his bag, and joins Shiro in the bathroom to freshen up. Neither of them flinch at Keith stealing Shiro’s brush, or his deodorant and cologne. Keith does skip brushing his teeth in favor of just swishing around some mouthwash, so he doesn’t have to ask Shiro for a spare toothbrush.

The two of them move around eachother in the bathroom seamlessly, anytime they bump into, or nudge eachother is on purpose, and done jokingly. It’s odd how easily they work together in a domestic setting. Keith can almost imagine them growing old, and getting their own home together, doing their morning routine together every day. It’s a nice thought, one he forces down the very second it pops up. When they finish up, and join Allura in the communications room. It’s not long before the rest of Voltron, the three Keith saw the other day, join them.

“I think you guys have already met” Shiro handles the introductions when the other three seem to all arrive at the same time. Keith wonders if they came together.

“Kind of” Keith shrugs, not caring much for the way the lanky guy, Lance, he remembers, glares at him.

“Well, then. Keith, this is Lance McClain, He’s a Galaxy City Police officer. He’s going to be piloting the Blue Lion” Keith begrudgingly sticks his hand out to Shake lances hand. The officer stares at the gesture with a quirked-up eyebrow, but he completes the greeting regardless.

“This is Hunk Garret. He’s a Chef and an engineer. He’s going to be the Yellow Paladin” Hunk is the big guy with the deep tan skin and is wearing the same pale shirt from the other day. He shakes Keith’s hand, it’s firm, warm and friendly. He gives Keith a big smile.

“Nice to actually meet you, dude” Hunk seems kind enough, so Keith gives him a small smile in return.

“You too”

“And this is Pidge Gunderson. Pilot of The Green Lion” Shiro turns his attention to the last, and smallest member of Voltron. The pale, tiny guy with wild pale brown hair and big round glasses. The face is unmistakable. Now, up close, and without worry and anxiety clouding his brain, he’s sure the resemblance is uncanny.

“Nice to meet you, Pidge” He says, as they shake hands. But there is a different name on the tip of his tongue. He glances at Shiro from the corner of his eye, and he sees his best friend nod. If this is who he thinks they are, then there’s a reason for the slight disguise, for the name. He wants to ask, wants to confirm, but he figures it’s better to not question it.

“Yeah” Pidge smiles at him as their hands pull away. Shiro’s own hand clamps down on Keith’s shoulder.

“And this, is Keith Kogane” Shiro grins, voice lilting with pride. “He’s our red paladin” The others all give him a smile, and Keith can’t help but give a tiny smile back.

“Welcome to the team”

“I hate to break the ambiance, but technically, none of you are Paladins, quite yet” Allura’s regal voice chimes in, pulling all of their attention over to her. She stands in the center of the room in a pair of pale blue Haigh waisted jeans, and a flowy white top. Her long, striking white hair pops out against her dark skin, and it cascades down her back in a tangle of curls. Every time Keith sees her, Allura always looks elegant. She somehow manages to look casual, and yet powerful at the same time. Allura is the kind of person who leads and commands with so much ease. She makes everything look so graceful. He understands now why people refer to her as ‘The Princess’, because she very much looks, and acts like one.

“What do you mean?” Shiro asks the question they’re all thinking. It’s odd to think Allura would leave Shiro out of the loop for something, but maybe she wanted to tell all of Voltron, at the same time.

“I mean, that while I…”Allura trails off for a second as she glances at Keith “ _We…_ ” She corrects herself “selected each of you because we thought you would be a good match to a certain roll, and you all accepted this by showing up today, we don’t actual have the final decision” She says, holding her hands together in front of her, her shoulders tightening.

“Who does?” Lance asks, placing his hands on his hips as he leans forward a bit.

“Well, Voltron of course” She answers, she turns to her laptop, and pulls something up on it.

“I thought the team made up Voltron?” Shiro asks, and Allura nods her head in agreement.

“It does, but that doesn’t mean Voltron isn’t something on its own. In order to form Voltron, you need these” Up in the air forms a holograph. A line up on sleek motorcycles. Keith’s stomach starts to burn up in excitement.

“These are the Lions. Built by my father, and the original team Voltron. They work in sync with their rider. Well you start up your lion, it will feed off, and use your energy to run. It will tap into your personality, and your quintessence gene. For example, Keith?” Allura turns to him once again, and he feels the blinding spotlight drop on him.

“Uh, yeah?”

“You’re quintessence gene gives you speed far beyond normal human limits, right?” She asks, and he feels the air get knocked out of him. No one knows about that. Technically, the only person out side of the blade of Marmora who knows Keith has the Quintessence gene is Shiro. No one is supposed to know he has it, or what it allows him to do. Even if Allura had his old tests from The Garrison, it wouldn’t be on there, all his tests were faked, and he took every trial without using his powers. He’s never been to a real doctor to have it on his medical records either…Which means...

“Shiro” He whispers, turning to his best friend, who has apparently ratted him out.

“Keith, you’re here to use your powers, I think the rest of the team should know about them” Is the only answer he gets out of him. He sighs in frustration. He breaks more and more Marmora rules with every second he’s here, he swears.

“Yeah” He turns back to Allura, and gives her a curt nod as an answer.

“What’s your max speed, and how long can you last?” She asks, and he hesitates.

“In high school, I clocked him at about 50 miles per hour, and he can only last like that for about 40 minutes before he crashes” The others gaze on him narrows as Shiro answers.

“Has it changed since then?” Shiro asks to confirm his story, Keith nods, keeping his gaze locked on Allura.

“Yeah, I haven’t kept up running since high school, so it’s probably the same or worse” He lies. He hasn’t really used his powers, sure, but The Blade still trains him, still pushes him. Keith’s real speed is about 75, getting really close to 80mph, and he can last a little over an hour now too. But he can’t tell them that. They’d want to know when he trained and how. They know enough as it is.

“If you activate the red lion, it should be able to tap into that. I’m just guessing now, but your Lion should be able to go well over 200mph, maybe even 300” Keith’s body feels like it’s on fire because he’s never driven anything that fast, and _holy shit_ if that doesn’t sound like the coolest thing to him. His Marmora issued bike barely reached 160, but that was really pushing it. He managed that once, and it spent a week in the shop after. His fingers twitch. He wants… no…he _needs_ to get his hands on that bike.

“That’s so fucking cool” He can’t help but to whisper under his breath, only Shiro, who stands so close to his left, seems to hear it, because a little smile perks up on his lips.

“All the Lions are capable of this, should you unlock them”

“ _Should?_ ” The short one, Pidge, Keith reminds himself, echoes Allura.

“While the Lions do absorb your personality, and essence, they do have one of their own”

“They have their own personalities?” Big guy, Hunk, asks.  Allura nods, seemingly a bit excited.

“They do. Each Lion has their own personality, which should correspond with yours, but they can disregard you. The Lion will choose whether or not you are a worthy paladin” Keith finds that a bit outlandish, but at the same time, he believes it. He’s heard of weirder stuff, he’s seen weirder stuff, then machines having an actual essence. However, this may be a problem for Keith. He wonders what the credentials the Lions have for being a paladin. He’s scared he’ll get rejected.

“That’s… That’s… Wow” Lance, and all of them really, seem to be at a loss for words.

“The Black Lion is meant for Natural leaders. Strong headed, skilled, brave and courageous. It takes the most energy to pilot, but it’s the most powerful. It’s the lead of Voltron. Of course, this role will be given to Shiro” Allura types something into her computer, and a single, large but sleek Cruiser motorcycle pops up on the hologram. Flat black with the occasional silver, with the decal of a lion’s face on the front end, where a brand label would usually go. She moves the hologram over, and it lands itself directly in front of it’s chosen rider. Everyone seems awed by the technology. The castle seems to be a millennia ahead of the outside world. Shiro, whose used to the tech, seems to be focused on everything else, until something seems to click in his head.

“Is that why you named me Lion Shadow?” he looks over the hologram to Allura, who gives him a smile and shrugs.

“I figured this day might come” She teases. Shiro gives her a weak smile.

“The yellow lion is a strong part of Voltrons foundation. The Yellow lion looks for someone who puts the safety and lives of other people above their own. They should be kind and warm and friendly. But strong and stable. Hunk is our best candidate for this” The hologram once again narrows to a single motorcycle. A big, clunk of metal. To Keith, that thing looks more like a quad then a motorcycle.  Keith’s pretty sure it’s called a Quad chopper. It’s thick, mainly extra muscle, much like it’s chosen rider. It’s painted Silver and a bright yellow, with the same emblem as Shiro’s. Not exactly his first choice in color, but it seems to work good for hunk.

“This thing is so cool” Hunk whispers, more to the hologram then anyone else.

“The Blue Lion” Allura starts, pulling up a Hologram of a sleek, silver motorcycle, that’s just a bit more of a chopper then it is a cruiser. The seat is just a little too low, and the handle bars a little too high to be a cruiser. Deep blue with accents black and silver. She pushes it over towards Lance.

“Let me guess, goes to the handsomest, and most talented?” Lance makes a terrible attempt at flirting, as he winks in Allura’s direction. The Princess gives him a deadpan gaze, before turning her attention to Pidge.

“The green lion is the quizzical and creative. Kind and inventive. It connects to nature and the world around it in mysterious ways no one but it’s paladin could hope to understand. The green lion solves problems and helps guide the team. That’s you, Pidge”  A little forest green crotch rocket bike, with those repeating black and gray accents and the same Lion symbol forms on the hologram, and shifts towards pidge. Pidge grins at it, seemingly happy with her Lion.

“Sweet”

“and for Keith. The Red Lion” The last hologram is that of a deep cherry red sports bike, similar to Pidge’s little crotch rocket, and it’s got those black and silver accents and that black lion symbol and Keith’s hands twitch. “The red Lion is the most temperamental. It’s picky with it’s paladin. It relies on instinct, and although it can be quite unpredictable, it’s a real power house. The Red Lion acts as a second in command for Voltron. My father was the original red paladin” She reveals, letting the hologram glide over to Keith. He marvels at the beauty before him with wide eyes and a fire in his ass. He can’t wait to ride that thing. He needs to get his hands on it. That bike looks like it’s made for him, it’s his dream. Allura’s weary glances towards him start to make sense, she doesn’t know if he’s really fit to pilot the red lion, ready to take the same role her own father once held, but Keith doesn’t care. He doesn’t care what other people think of him. He’s riding that bike.

“The sooner we get you guys to your Lions, the better. We need to start training you, and we need to start fighting back against The Galra, but there’s one problem” Allura returns her attention to her computer. All the holograms disappear, and a map appears in the center of the room.

“What’s the problem?” Shiro asks. It’s weird to think that Shiro, despite living her, and working with Allura daily, is in the dark as much as they are.

“Well, we don’t know where four of them are for starters” She sighs, and that all perks up their curiosity.

“And the fifth?”

“The Black Lion is here in the castle, but it’s protected in a barrier that can only be deactivated if all the other lions are present”

“Well fuck” Lance groans in annoyance, vocalizing basically what they are all thinking.

“Before my father past away, when Voltron first disbanded, each paladin hid their Lion, along with their Bayard”

“What’s a Bayard?”

“The Bayard is basically the key to your Lion, it’s also your weapon. Just like your Lion, it will feed off of your own essence to work”

“Alright, So How do we find the Lions and our Ba yards?”

“I can attempt to track them. It would be easier if I had access to the black lion, or one of the other lions first, luckily, the Lions all have a high amount of quintessence built into them, which I could be able to read on the map. It will take me some time, however, to make the map, and then narrow down the possibilities…” Allura doesn’t sound too happy, but Keith’s stopped paying attention. His brain stopped working after she mentioned the Lions quintessence.

“I know where one is” The words leave his mouth before he can contemplate them. Once again, Keith feels the spot light drop on him, and he starts to regret his words.

“I think” He corrects himself.

“How?” Allura questions, she squints at him, like she’s trying to read his mind. If she is, she won’t find anything, so Keith ignores her.

“Keith’s really sensitive to quintessence. He can sense it from like, a mile away” Shiro says it like he’s suddenly remembering the little fact. He’s probably remembering that Keith knew Shiro had the quintessence gene long before he actually told him. Keith’s always been sensitive to quintessence. He can feel it. He doesn’t really know why, nor does he understand it, but the Blade has even tested him on it.

“Like a blood hound?” Lance snorts, but Keith just nods.

“There’s a big ball of energy that pulses right about here” Keith moves forward to the map, and points his finger at it.

“The park by your apartment?” Shiro points out, sounding skeptical.

“Yeah, I go there all the time, I take my runs past there. I can feel it. There’s serious quintessence lurking underground. I feel it every time.” The more he thinks about it, the more he’s sure about it. It’s got to be a Lion. It’s not a Galra base. The Blade have a track on every Galra base except for the main leader’s base, and that’s because his is constantly on the move. The energy in the park is always there. It calls out to Keith, drags him in. But he never listens to it.

“Keith, are you sure?”

“Yes, I’m sure. There’s something there. I’ve spent a lot of time there, I know it” Keith spends a lot of time walking, running. He spends a lot of time sitting in the grass at night, staring up at the stars. A lot of nights using the calm, quite atmosphere of the park to clear his mind. 3 years’ worth of going to that park.

“Do you maybe know which Lion it is?” Allura asks, and he shakes his head at her.

“No, I’m sorry. I never tried to find the source of the quintessence, I just know it’s there” She sighs, but nods her head.

“In that case, you’ll all need to go. Keith, you’ll have to show the way”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hope you guys liked the chapter! Next time we will be finding all the Lions, I promise! We are getting there!   
> Shout out to my Beta, as always, who totally rocks and I would never be able to do this without him!


	8. Blue

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> “I think we just found the blue lion”

“I think it’s time for you all to suit up” Allura grins, clapping her hands together. Keith’s agreed to show the others to where he thinks the first lion is, however, judging by the tight frown on his lips, he doesn’t actually want to do that.

“That’s a bad idea” Keith grumbles, pulling everyone’s attention again.

“Keith, if this really is the location of one of the Lions, then there could be-“

“There could be little kids, there could be families, old people feeding birds” Keith snaps, cutting her off. “This is a _park”_ Shiro sighs, and places a hand on Keith’s shoulder.

“Keith, we don’t know what we are up against, we don’t know what’s there. It’s better to be safe then sorry” Shiro tries, he tries to get Keith to see what Allura is asking, but it’s not that easy to win over Keith.

“So, you want us to storm into a public park in glinting vintage Voltron armor? You know what that’s going to do? It’s going to cause suspicion and panic. Do you really want to scare the mases? Better yet, do you really want to alert The Galra, and let them know that Voltron is trying to reform, before we even have the Lions? If they know, they’ll race to find the Lions before us, and then we’ve got a real problem” Keith growls, his arms cross over his chest as he goes back in his usual defensive position. His eyes flicker from Allura and Shiro both, challenging them to try and counter that. Shiro doesn’t, He thinks Keith might actually be right. All they’d do by marching into a public, seemingly peaceful place dressed in paladin armor Is cause issues with the public _and_ Galra. That’s something they can’t risk doing when they don’t technically even have Voltron yet.

“He’s right. We shouldn’t bring that much attention to ourselves yet” However, it isn’t Shiro who backs up Keith. The first one to Support him is Pidge.

“What if there are Galra?” Hunk, a bit nervous, interjects the one down side to Keith’s argument.

“We’ll be fine” Keith assures, but he has no way of knowing that. This is a side of Keith Shiro has seen way too many times. It’s Keith’s action mode. His fight or flight. Keith always choses fight. Regardless of having the skill and intelligence to think rationally and come up with a more solid plan, Keith choses to rely on his instinct instead. Right now, Keith’s gut is telling him, telling them all, that they can do this.

“Are you sure, cause I’ve seen Galra fighters, they usually have guns, like, big guns” Hunk’s worry doesn’t seem to trust Keith’s gut, and neither does Lances.

“Hunks right, if there’s Galra, they will be armed, and we won’t be. We won’t stand a chance”

“We will be fine” Keith restates, leaning in their direction a bit more. “We can do this. There won’t be any Galra”

“How can you be so sure?”

“I’ve gone to that park almost every day for three years, trust me, there are no Galra” Three years. He says. Three years. He started going after Shiro’s disappearance. He goes there for Shiro. Keith doesn’t need to say it specifically, it’s just the way he says those words that hit Shiro, that let him know exactly what Keith means.

“We have to trust Keith on this one, guys. We can’t risk drawing that much attention to us by showing up to a park of all places heavily armed. We have to risk it” Shiro finally speaks up, and makes his move to back up Keith. Who glances at Shiro with a frown, but nods his head regardless.

“Fine, you’ll go in, unarmored and unarmed. But be careful” Allura agrees, and they all nod their heads.

“Hey” Keith steps towards pidge and Hunk, Allura comes over to Shiro to tell him to get the Van ready.

“You two are engineers, right?” That’s all he gets to hear out of that conversation, before he has to disappear to the garage.  

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The ride in the van to the park was awkward. Keith refused to sit in the passenger seat, next to Shiro as he drove. Instead, he chose to sit in the back with Pidge and Hunk as they rigged up some kind of tracker. That means Lance got to sit in the passenger seat, which also means Lance would not stop messing with the radio.

“What even is that thing?” Shiro asks Keith when they finally arrive, and all pile out of the car, thankful to be away from Lances weird music tastes.

“Think of it like a metal detector, but instead of detecting metal, it picks up on quintessence” Pidge answers him instead of Keith, sounding pretty enthusiastic as hunk finishes up with something in her backpack. Shiro figures there’s some kind of computer in there, but it looks sort of funny. Hunk is carrying this monitor, and Pidge is holding a wand looking thing. Since they both connect to whatever is in Pidges backpack, it kind of looks like she’s wearing one of those awful child leashes.

“it was Keith’s idea”

“Not really, I just asked if they could make something to help us narrow down the search. Hunk came up with the real design, then he and Pidge actually made it happen” Keith shrugs, giving both the engineers a humble, kind smile. They return it. It’s nice, Shiro thinks, to see Keith actually getting along with others. It’s rare. What Shiro doesn’t like, is the seemingly cold mood Keith has towards him.

“It was a great idea, regardless. You guys did great” Shiro praises, earning him two smiles, but the third, the smile he really, really wants to see, doesn’t even glance his way.

“It’s this way” Is what Keith says instead, and already he starts walking off to the sides of the park.

This park is one of the biggest in the cities. Acres and Acres of space. A small section is of course dedicated to a playground for children, but there’s also a nice grassy area for picnics, which is where Keith took Shiro. Then park starts to turn into just pure nature, just grass with sparse trees and natural walk ways, but eventually, the trees start to come together in thicker groups and just becomes a forest. This is where Keith leads them. To the denser part of the woods.

“Don’t move” They walk in silence, following partially on Keith’s lead, and partially on pidges. When they start to venture into the thick tree scape, Keith stops them. He looks around quickly.

“Stay here” He instructs.

“Keith, we need to stick together” Shiro tries to tell him, because he doesn’t like the idea of Keith wandering out alone, since they don’t really know what’s waiting for them. Keith apparently doesn’t share the same worries, however, because he only glances at Shiro from over his shoulder, before taking off into the woods, at a speed impossible for any of them to interrupt.

“Man, that was sketchy, what is he making us wait for?” Lance groans in annoyance, after a full minute of them waiting, but none of them have an answer, so Lance groans again.

“That’s it, I’m going” Lance takes a single step forward, but Shiro grabs him by his elbow to stop him.

“Wait. Keith wouldn’t tell us to do something without reason. He’s probably just-“

“Scouting the area” Keith is suddenly back, standing in front of them, doubling over slightly, taking in a deep breath.

“are you okay?” Shiro steps towards him, and sets a hand on his shoulder. Keith stands up straight, and stretches out a bit.

“I’m fine” he sighs. “Running just takes a lot out of me, ya know?” Shiro nods and squeezes his shoulder.

“Are we good to go?”

“Yeah, we’re good. But this is as far as I’ve ever gotten. Pidge and hunk are leading from here” The two nod, and pidge waves her wand through the air a bit. Like a dowsing rod. Hunk stares down at his monitor for a second.

“That way” He gestures towards the east end of the forest, and he and Pidge start trekking through the trees. The other three paladins following closes behind. Shiro sticks close by Keith, who looks like he’s a bit unstable. Running must have took a lot out of him, he looks like he could fall at any moment, which is why Shiro is staying as near as possible; ready to catch him at a moment notice.

They follow the quintessence detector mindlessly, and silently. That is, until Hunks machine suddenly goes haywire, beeping like crazy, and they all stop.

“Oh hell no” Lance is the first to vocalize what they’re all thinking when they come face to face with a very dark, ominous looking cave entrance.

“This thing looks like a portal to another dimension” Pidge mumbles as she wanders closer to it, looking around at it’s side. The tunnel entrance is tall and wide, and at the face of a small hill that sprouts seemingly random from the ground. Considering the hill itself isn’t very long or large, but the tunnel looks deep, Shiro’s guessing it goes downward…

“Guess were about to find out” Keith is the first to move forward, and enter the cave.

The rest of them exchange nervous glances before following him in. Shiro’s surprised by how inside the cave, all light seems to disappear. With only a few steps, he can barely see his teammates around him.

“Holy shit it’s dark in here” He hears Lance grumble. Despite not being able to see much, they all continue walking forward. Listening carefully to the others footsteps.

“Pidge, don’t you have a flashlight in that backpack of yours?”

“No”

“Doesn’t anyone here have their cell with a flashlight?” Hunk offers suggestions, but sadly, none of them have their phones.

“Great, so we get to just wander around in pitch black and hope we find something” Lance complains again, Shiro reaches out into the dark, towards where he knows Keith is, and locks his hand down on his shoulder. He feels Keith’s muscles tense, but only for a slight second.

“Oh, ow, shit” Comes Lances voice again, but this time, he’s not complaining, he’s cursing as he trips over a rock, and stumbles to catch himself against the cave walls. Lances hands slam onto the tunnel with a load slapping sound, and a second later, the room bursts with color as bright blue crystals that apparently where imbedded throughout the rock, began to glow.

“Woah” They all gasp, staring at the beautiful gems all around them. They bring lots of new light to the cave, and at last, they can see.

“That’s so cool” Keith mumbles. They all take a moment to admire the natural beauty around them as they continue walking. Shiro himself is more distracted by Keith then the gemstones. The way Keiths eyes reflect that blue, and the way his hair creates gentle shadows along his skin as a side effect from the light. He looks like something out of a painting. He looks beautiful.  

They’re so distracted by the crystals, and the new atmosphere they bring, that they all fail to notice the path beneath them disappearing. The world falls out beneath them, and they all go tumbling down a long hole, shrieking in shock and fear.

“What the fuck!” Someone shouts, Shiro’s not sure who, as they plummet, and slam suddenly into the ground.

“What just happened?” Keith groans, he landed directly next to Shiro, their legs intersecting a bit.

“I think” Shiro starts, but he’s very quickly distracted by something in the corner of his eye. He whips his head around to look at it, and gasps. “I think we just found the blue lion” Shiro finishes his sentence, his eyes falling on the sleek blue motorcycle that stands proudly at the center of the cave they landed in.

“Oh hell yes!” Lance is off the ground in seconds, so is Keith.

“That’s great, but how do we get it out of here?” Keith asks, moving towards it.   
“How do _we_ get out of here?” Hunk corrects, sounding a bit paranoid as he glances around the cave, that seemingly only has one opening, and that’s up.

“huh?” Shiro hears Keith hum, and he looks back over to the bike to find Keith standing just a few feet away from him, hand floating up in midair, pressed against an invisible wall.

“That looks like it’s going to be a –“ Lance sighs, walking up next to Keith to test this force field too, “Problem…” The last word of the sentence dies on Lances tongue as his hand phases right through the protective barrier.

“I think Lance was just accepted as the Blue Paladin” Hunk chimes in in awe, watching with the rest of them as Lance slowly, eyes wide, makes his way over to the bike. They all wait in anticipation. He sets his hand down on one handle bar, and his whole body goes rigid.

“Lance?” He asks in worry.

“ _Holy shit, that’s so cool_ ” Lance gasps, his whole face lighting up in astonishment.

“Lance, what’s happening?” He asks, but again is ignored as Lance swings himself onto the bike, gripping tightly at the handles.

“Guys…” his eyes flutter shut as he finally responds. “guys, holy shit, I can feel it”

“Feel what?”

“The connection. That thing Allura said, about the Lion connecting with you? _I can feel it_. And I think… I think it’s talking to me” His voice is soft as he leans forward a bit, his knuckles going white as his clutch on the bike tightens.

“It’s a motorcycle, it can’t talk” Keith huffs, raising an eyebrow at Lance. Shiro has to agree, the idea of it talking to him is just a bit preposterous.

“Shut it mullet, I’m trying to listen” Lance snaps back, not bothering to look at Keith, let alone open his eyes. Keith huffs again, a cute frown tugging at his lips. Shiro doesn’t miss the way his hand shoots to the back of his neck, feeling at his hair.

“Guys… Guys I think it’s telling me how to get out of here?” Shiro looks around again, but he still can’t see any exit, the only way in and out of the cave seems to be the hole they fell in from, and there is no way they’re getting out through there, unless that thing can fly, and carry all five of them, they’re screwed. Shiro could phase them out, but he doesn’t know where he’s going, or how thick the cave walls are. He also doesn’t know if he can phase them all at once, he’d have to take multiple trips, which would just make things worse.

“How exactly is it gonna do that?” Pidge asks in disbelief. Lance hums.

“It’s gonna open a door… I think?”

“You think?”

“Yeah, it’s showing me stuff, like images in my head. There’s a door somewhere in here, and blue can open it”

“Then hurry up and open that door, I’m getting kind of anxious in here” Hunk complains, and Lance nods, his eyes finally opening.

“Okay, okay… uh… How do you start this thing?” Lance freezes, eyes thoroughly scanning the bike.

“There’s no keys?”

“There’s no _ignition_ ” Lance corrects. That’s a whole different problem. How the hell do you start something that doesn’t have an ignition?

“Maybe you have to connect with it?” Keith suggests, and Lance shakes his head.

“I thought I did connect with it?”

“I don’t think so, technically, it connected with you. In talking to you, showing you the way out, it was doing all the work. Maybe you have to return the favor in order to get it going?” Pidge backs up Keith’s theory, and Lance hesitates for a moment.

“Alright, fine” He sigh, and he gently closes his eyes again. His hands grip at the handle bars, and he leans forward a bit, almost resting his head against them. He sighs again, and all of a sudden, the bike purrs to life.

“Woah” Lances eyes pop open in excitement when the engine roars.

“Now that’s what I am talking about! Let’s get the heck out of here!” He exclaims in excitement.

“Hold on” Keith holds up his hand. “Do you even know how to drive that thing?”

 “Awe, what’s the matter, mullet? You look scared?” Lance teases him, but Keith just nods at his head.

“I’m realizing that the fate of our lives might be in your hands right now, so yeah, I am terrified” Keith counters with a roll of his eyes.

“Alright, enough of that” Shiro steps in, placing a hand on Keith’s shoulder to reign him in. “Lance, get us out of here”

“Will do, Captain” Lance grins, and revs the engine of his Lion. Shiro’s never heard a motorcycle roar that loud. The cave around them shakes a bit, and one walls of the cave begins to collapse.

“Let’s hurry and get outta here” Keith grumbles, grabbing onto Shiro’s arm and dragging them forward, very quickly racing after Lance as he launches through the new-found tunnel.

“If this whole thing collapses-“Pidge starts to warn, her and Hunk following right behind.

“We’re screwed!” Hunk finishes her thought.

“We’re gonna be fine, just keep up!” Keith barks. Shiro can see him struggling to run, this pace should be easy for him, but he seems to wince with every step. Shiro goes a bit cold, wondering if Keith might have gotten hurt during their fall.

“Guys, bad news!” Lance shouts up ahead of them, followed by the sound of gunshots.

“Shit” Keith hisses, at the same time a bullet whips right past them, just barely missing them, thanks to Shiro grabbing his arm, and yanking him down to the floor.

“You said we were clear!” Pidge shouts at Keith from the other side of the cave, where her and Hunk and have ducked down as well.

“We were!” Keith growls, hands pressing hard against the ground. Shiro watches as Keith raises his legs a bit, getting in a sprinters position. They can’t see who Is shooting, what they’re wielding, or how many people are out there. only Lance knows what’s going on. Keith apparently doesn’t care about that.

“Stay here, don’t get shot” As they near the edge of the new cave, Lance stops, and blocks off the entrance. Keith shouts more orders to them, kicking himself off the ground, sprinting towards the tunnel entrance, and hoping directly over the back of Lances Lion to rush out of the cave.

“Keith!” They shout after him. But he’s too far to even hear then by now. Shiro doesn’t want to imagine what Keith is feeling. If he was hurting at a normal, human pace, what’s he feeling at that speed?

“Lance, go after him, try and get those shooters off his back!” Shiro commands, and Lance too takes off without arguing or questioning.  Shiro, Pidge and Hunk duck helplessly, backs pressed against the walls of the cave.

“When I tell you to, grab my hand, and start running” Shiro gives his next order, trying to work out the plan in his head. If he knows Keith like he thinks he does, then he has a good idea of what he’s doing, and tries to work with it. He keeps his eyes glued to the entrance of the tunnel, keeping an eye out for the enemy.

“Shiro-“

“Are you insane? Do you want to get us shot?” They both gasp, but Shiro doesn’t budge.

“Just trust me, and do as I say” He stands his ground, his teammates don’t argue this time.

Shiro takes in a deep breath, trying his best to concentrate, and he counts down from ten in his head. He’s never tried this before, not with two people, not with this much going on around him, but it’s going to have to work.

“Now” He demands, when he reaches one in his mind. Pidge latches on to his right hand, and hunk to his left. He pushes all his focus onto his powers as they push themselves off the ground, and bolt out of the tunnel. Outside, in the bright light, surrounded by trees and people dressed in dark black uniforms wielding big guns, Pidge and Hunk start shrieking in fear. Bullets fling towards them and he feels his teammates falter, but he drags them right along with him. After a couple seconds of realizing that that are still alive, and unharmed, they both open the eyes they had squeezed shut.

“Woah”

“Shiro?! Are you doing this!?” Pidge gasps, realizing in pure shock that every bullet that flies their way simply phases right through them. He gives a curt nod, trying to keep his focus as he charges forward through the trees. Behind them, he can hear the purr of the blue lion’s engine, following them, and slowly taking out a couple shooters.

“There! The trails!” Hunk shouts, and Shiro nods again, because that’s exactly what he was aiming for. In the distance, he can hear another engine, and he knows his instincts were right. Just as they reach the dirt pathways, the van they came in pulls up, Keith in the driver’s seat. Shiro hurdles them into the van, straight through the metal doors, and they tumble into the back. Once in the safe confines of the car, Shiro drops both their hands, and takes an uneasy breath, happy to finally solidify again.

“You alright back there?” Keith calls.

“Just drive!” Pidge shouts at him, and Shiro can hear the grin in his voice as he responds.

“Don’t have to tell me twice”

 

 

 

 

 

 

“You said there wouldn’t be any Galra!” Back at the Castle of Lions, while Allura is busy experimenting with the quintessence pulled from Blue whilst the other paladins are having a go at Keith.

“There weren’t any Galra!” Keith snaps back, hands on his hips as he defends himself.

“We were getting shot at!”

“Not by Galra!” Keith growls “Those weren’t Galra. I know Galra” Shiro doesn’t like that Keith is so confident in that. He shouldn’t know what Galra are like, shouldn’t know how to spot them. Most people only know The Galra based off their emblem, other then that symbol, you’d never know, but the way Keith says it, Shiro just knows he means something else, and he’s not sure if he wants to know How Keith knows…

“How do you know?”

“I just know!”

“Keith’s right, I’ve seen Galra before, those guys weren’t them” Hunk chimes in, and Lance frowns.

“Fine, if they weren’t Galra, then what were they?”

“Garrison” Keith admits, and they all look at him with wide eyes.

“They’re from the garrison?”

“But how do you know that?”

“I’ve spent a lot of time snooping around the Garrison” Keith shrugs with confidence.

“What were you snooping around the Garrison for?” Shiro asks, and it’s a stupid question, because he already knows.

“I didn’t buy their story. There’s no way I’d believe that you and Matt Holt, of all people, died in a science experiment gone wrong. So, I snooped around to see if I could find anything. I didn’t find a lot… But I’ve seen those people, those uniforms, before” He sighs, and turns to face Shiro. Behind him, Pidge twitches when her brother is mentioned. Shiro nods in understanding.

“I believe you” Is all Shiro tells him, even though he has so much more to say. He wants to talk to Keith about what happened during their three-year gap. He knows it still haunts Keith, still haunts them both. But he wants to know what Keith was doing during those years.

“What was the garrison doing around blue though?”

“I don’t know” Allura speaks up, as she crosses the room to her laptop. “But let’s hope that’s the last we have to deal with them, because I just found the Yellow, and the Green Lion”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I do not know the meaning of a 'short chapter' apparently. The next two chapters are also long as hell.


	9. Lions

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> He can’t be rejected. He needs this. He worked too hard for this. He needs to be the Red Paladin, he’s too far gone to go back now.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So so so sorry about the random hiatus guys! My life kinda spiraled out of control for a while there, but I am back and hopefully on track again! Hope you like this chapter, and chapter 10 will be up in a few days!

“We need to get those Lions as soon as possible. We should split into teams”

“I call dibs on Hunk!” Lance barely even lets Shiro finish his sentence, before he’s tossing an arm over hunks shoulder. Shiro shrugs, because he would have paired them together anyway.

“Fair enough, I’ll be going with Pidge. Keith-“

“You can go without me. I’m gonna swing by my apartment” Shiro hesitates, because he wants Keith to come with him. He knows Katie, Pidge, would rather go alone, but he doesn’t want to leave Keith the odd man out.

“If you’re sure?” He asks, and Keith knows.

“I’m-“

“Actually, Keith!” It’s Coran’s turn to interrupt, sauntering into the room, wiping what looks like black ink from his hands.

“Would you mind picking up Ryou? I’m having a bit of trouble with some of the castles maintenance, and I’d rather not leave again till It’s complete!” Shiro does remember Coran saying something about reworking the training room to be better fit for the team. He also likes that plan better, because that means Keith won’t be alone, and he knows Ryou would absolutely love that. They both look at him with pleading eyes.

“I hate to break it to you, but they won’t let me pick him up” Keith shakes his head.

“You’re his teacher?”

“Doesn’t matter. The school system is super untrusting these days, and with good reason. Only approved ‘guardians’ can pick up kids”

“Shiro and I can fix that on our way to the green lion” Pidge pikes up, and Keith stares at her with a worried, somewhat confused look.

“Do I want to know how?” He asks cautiously, and she shakes her head with a grin.

“The less questions you ask, the better” He hesitates a moment before sighing in defeat.

“Fine”

Not long after that they’re all in the garage, packing up to shoot off. Lance and Hunk wave goodbye as they blast off together on the blue Lion. Shiro’s not actually sure how they both fit on that, the bikes don’t look like they can fit two people.

Shiro steps over to Keith, after Pidge has climbed into, and settled into the van.  “Go pick up your kid” Shiro jokes, earning him a soft chuckle.

“He only likes me better because I let him eat ice-cream” Keith jokes back, grinning up at Shiro.

“Don’t you dare”

“Too late, he’s my kid now, and my kid get’s ice-cream after school”

“Shiro, let’s go!” Pidge pokes her head out of the car window, and sticks her tongue out at him, causing them both to chuckle again.

“Alright, alright” Shiro exaggerates a sigh. “I’ll see you when I get home?”

“I’ll be here when you get home” Keith nods in agreement, right before Shiro pulls him into a quick, tight embrace. Keith leans in to, buries his face in Shiro’s shoulder, and holds him just as tight for as long as he can before they begrudgingly pull apart. Shiro could hold Keith like that for hours, all day probably. If he could, he would just scoop Keith up into his arms, and carry him off to his bedroom where they can cuddle up and sleep together in peace and silence for weeks… They’ve both got things to do, responsibilities to take care of though.

 

 

In the van, Pidge pulls out her laptop, and settles it on her lap. Shiro’s eyes are too focused on the road to really see what she’s doing, but he has an idea that she’s most likely hacking into the school system somehow.

“So Shiro…” She starts forming her question, a tiny smirk forming on her lips. “I am setting Keith as one of Ryou’s school contacts, should I put him down as your fiancé or as your husband?” She asks, and Shiro chokes on the air he breaths.

“Pidge-“ he stammers, not knowing what else to say. There are not words for all the thoughts in his mind. He doesn’t even want to know why she’d joke like that, he couldn’t ask even if he wanted to, the words ‘Keith’ and ‘husband’ are echoing in his brain like a mantra, making his whole body feel flush and oddly nervous, dominating over any other more rational thoughts he might have had.

“Yeah, you’re right, you and Keith are way past the honeymoon stage. I’ll put him down as your husband”

“Pidge no!” but she only laughs. He makes her promise that she won’t put Keith down as his husband, or fiancé. She begrudgingly finishes up whatever work she was doing, with a slight chuckle to herself in amusement, probably still laughing at Shiro, and the deep blush that’s made its way over his cheeks. She closes her computer, and shifts her whole body to look out the window, staring silently at the trees as they pass.

“You okay, pidge?” He asks after a minute or so, not quite used to her being so quiet.

“Yeah… I’m just... I’m just worried” she glances at him briefly, but for the most part, she keeps her focus on the outside world.

“Worried about what?”

“I’m just… I’m not a fighter, Shiro. I know you said I didn’t have to be, but I did my research on the old Voltron team. They were all fighters, different kinds of fighters, but they fought none the less, and they were good. I can’t do anything like they could, I can’t do anything like any of you. I’m a hacker Shiro, not a superhero….” She starts to express her worry, not giving Shiro a single chance to console her.

“I don’t know if I can be useful to Voltron. I know you and Allura picked me. You said it has to be me, but I don’t know about that. What if I am not cut out for this? What if the Lion doesn’t respond to me? What If I am not meant to be the Green Paladin? What if I can’t drive the Lion? I’ve never ridden a motorcycle before. I’ve never wanted to. Motorcycles are metal death traps. What if my Lions too big for me? They all looked pretty big in the hologram? What if I get on and my feet don’t rea-“ Pidge’s anxieties only grow as she speaks, and he excuses get more and more outlandish. She has no confidence in herself, no Confidence in what she can do. But Shiro does. He knows Pidge can do this, he knows she’s the right choice. He just needs her to see that too, he needs her to at least calm down long enough to try, because at this point, if she keeps talking, she’s going to talk her self out of Voltron all together.

“Pidge” He interrupts with a slight laugh, hoping to ease the tension a bit. Her mouth clamps shut, but she still makes no effort to look at him, like she’s scared that he’s going to confirm all her fears.

“I used to have the best mentor. He wasn’t the smartest professor at the Garrison. And he used to always say; ‘If you get too worried with what could go wrong, you might miss the chance to do something great’” Shiro notices Pidge perk up at the words, and he hears her tiny gasp. She knows who he’s talking about. Pidge probably heard that cheesy line at least once a week. But her father was right, now matter how cheesy it sounded, it was true. If you’re focusing on what could go wrong, you’ll never actually do it, and then you’ll never get to see everything that could have gone right. Thinking about it now, that might be advice Shiro needs to take as well…

She finally pulls her gaze away from the window to give Shiro a small, thankful smile. Not a minute later does Shiro park the van, just outside of town, at the end of a hiking trail. They get out, and together they begin the climb up the mountain through scattered trees. Shiro swears that they see an absurd amount of rabbits on the trail, but Pidge seems over joyed at the sigh of each furry creature that runs across their path.

It’s a good hour walk, following Pidges quintessence radar and Allura’s quadrants until they end up straying from the path, and finding a small cave.

Just outside the entrance, Pidge hesitates for a minute, staring at it with a knowing, nervous look. Shiro settles his hand on her shoulder, giving it a reassuring squeeze.

“Go on” He encourages her. “Be great” She looks up at him, and gives him a sudden daring smile, before bolting off into the cave. A minute later, the cave lights up a beautiful green, and after another ten minutes of waiting, Pidge zooms out on that small green Lion, a new light in her eyes and an excited holler on her tongue.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Allura is having a hard time locating the Red Lion, and Coran busied himself cleaning up the Castles system, So Keith leaves early so he can stop by his apartment. Allura lets him take her car, so he doesn’t have to run, or walk Ryou home.

At his apartment, Keith tidies up his apartment a bit. He makes sure everything is off, and packs up a couple sets of clothes. Despite making it clear he has no intention to move out of his apartment, he has this daunting feeling that he’s going to be stuck at The Castle of Lions for the next couple nights. So, he prepares for that, grabbing a few supplies. He throws out anything in his fridge that might go bad soon, he doesn’t keep his fridge well stocked anyway, so it’s not hard. He also lets a few of his neighbors, and the landlord know that he’ll most likely be gone until the end of the week. He figures the rest of the day, and maybe even tomorrow will be spent trying to find and retrieve the Red Lion. The last few days of the week will probably be for team building stuff, so they can form Voltron. He should be able to return to his apartment by Saturday. However, if he’s being honest, he might not want to. It’s already hard enough to sleep without Shiro by his side, it’s going to be infinitely harder to do after sleeping with him for a week straight.

On his way to the school, he contemplates requesting Allura find him a spare room for his stay. But just the idea of it makes him uncomfortable. He knows that he won’t be able to sleep alone, not knowing Shiro will just be down the hall. What about Shiro’s opinion though? Would Shiro want to share his room for the rest of the week? Would he be alright that? He hasn’t complained about sleeping with Keith yet, in fact, he seems to enjoy it just as much as Keith, but how could he know? Shiro would probably never tell him if he was uncomfortable. Shiro’s that kind of unselfish, chivalrous person. Should he ask him if it’s okay? Is it okay for him to just assume it’s okay to sleep in Shiro’s bed? Should he just save them both the trouble and get a spare room, or return to his apartment every night?

“Mr. Keith!” Ryou’s excited voice snaps Keith out of seemingly endless stream of worry the second he steps out of his car.

“Hi buddy” He greets in return, gasping a bit as Ryou rushes over to him to hug his leg. Thankfully, Ryou is one of the last children there, which means there aren’t as many parents to question his absence. He does have to talk to a few. He tells them all he had to take the day to settle a few personal matters. Which isn’t a complete lie. A couple of his kids come up to him, chatting to him happily about what they did in class without him. Keith slowly makes his way through the crowd of kids, Ryou gripping tightly at his hand, until he makes his way over to the substitute.

“Oh thank god, it’s you” Keith greets the sub, tall and silent as they wait behind the crowd, carefully watching each student, as well as the clip board in his hands.

“How you are doing, Regris?” He asks the stern man. Regris, or Reg as Keith likes to call him sometimes, is another Blade member, one Keith is well familiarized with. Because Reg goes on a lot of missions, they gave him only a part time job as a Substitute teacher. It gives him a little more free time, so he’s open to both day and night missions.

“You are lucky” Reg agrees, a curt nod of the head as he hands Keith his clipboard “Anyone else, and you’d be getting many jokes, and many questions about suddenly being put down as Mr. Shirogane’s ‘Partner’” A small, knowing smile pulls up on his lips as Keith stares down at the list with wide eyes.

“We’re not-“ Keith hesitates, his heart and brain fumbling when he reads the words on the sheet “Were not like that” but that doesn’t satisfy Regris, or the whispering parents behind him.

“Could’ve fooled me, after everything I’ve heard you’ve given up for this guy…” Reg trails off, alluding to, but not daring to say aloud what he means.

“That’s… That’s irrelevant to this. This is some kind of mistake, I’m sure” Keith is hyper aware of the spot light that has dropped on him, and the flush across his cheeks.

“But you are here to pick up Ryou, correct?” And Keith slowly nods his head, tightening his grip on the little kid’s hand, having a terrible feeling that he knows where the topic is going.

“Then I need you to confirm with the pick-up sheet” Regris grins, slowly taking his clip-board back from Keith.

Keith himself sighs, and hesitates.

“Keith Kogane” He gives his own name, his voice dropping a bit, trying to ignore the smug face on his acquaintances face.  “Mr. Shiroganes… Partner… I’m here to take Ryou home” He grits. Knowing its completely unnecessary, but also knowing that Regris is just as stubborn, if not more stubborn then he is. He’ll let him have this one, but if they ever get stuck on another mission together, he will have his revenge.

“Thank you, Mr. Kogane” He jokes, pushing an emphasis on the ‘Mr.’, as if they were strangers.

“I’ll get you back for this Regi” He leans forward to whisper harshly in the blade members ear, before turning on his heel, to look down at little Rou, who has the smile of a madman on his lips.

“What do you say to getting ice-cream before we head home?” Keith proposes, not missing the way the word ‘home’ forms so easily on his lips. He says it as though it were something shared. Their home. Not Ryou’s, not Shiro’s, not just the Castle of Lions, and not just a place. But _home_.

“Yeah, let’s go!” Ryou shouts in agreement, anxiously pulling Keith away from Regris, and the other parents and students and teachers, who are without a doubt gossiping about his apparent ‘partnership’ with Ryou’s guardian.

Keith is suddenly thankful for the impatience of children, once Ryou’s in his seat safely buckled in, and Keith is in the driver’s seat, vacating the parking lot, and he feels the weight of a hundred eyes suddenly lifted off of him.

 

Keith keeps his promise. He does take Ryou to a little ice-cream parlor on the other side of town. He lets him get whatever flavor he wants, and as many toppings as he wants. Keith himself goes simple, with a plain scoop of vanilla ice-cream. As they eat together outside the shop, Ryou brags to Keith about his school day, assuring him he got the lesson plan to the substitute as soon as possible, and he also reassures Keith that he likes him better for a teacher then Regris. That’s oddly satisfactory. Ryou also gabs about how Shiro rarely ever lets him have ice-cream and other sweets. “I can change that” Keith promised him with a little grin, that made Ryou laugh in delight. A woman even compliments them, when Keith got up briefly to throw away their trash. She told Keith that he was lucky to have such a cute kid, and that is wonderful to see such pure father-son bonding. His face went bright red, and he choked on his saliva a bit, but instead of correcting her, he simply thanks her, and returns to the child waiting patiently for him. He gets Ryou back home, and together they wait for Shiro while working on the first grader’s homework. If Ryou was attached to Keith before, he’d say there was no way Ryou would ever let him leave now. And, in complete honesty, Keith is probably just as attached to the little Shirogane.

Neither seem ready to end their little play date when the both teams suddenly return, and Coran shuffles Ryou off to play in his room. The poor kid only gets a brief hug from his uncle, and a promise to talk all about their days later.

“How was your trip?” Keith asks, it’s directed towards Pidge and Shiro, but Lance and Hunk start blabbering before anyone can say anything else. They sigh anxiously, retelling of all these galra drones that were lurking outside of the cave, how lance discovered the Lions have canons built into them, and he totally exaggerates about how awesome he was and about how many Galra he took out. Hunk gushes about how Lance totally betrayed him by dropping him off at the edge of the cave without a plan or a way to defend himself, and then takes off to deal with the soldiers. Hunk was apparently super terrified, and had to rewire an old mining elevator to get to his Lion, but once he actually got to it he says it was completely worth it. He said it was terrifying, but also probably the coolest thing he’s ever done. He discovered that his Lion can take a punch, but only after he accidentally rammed it right into a Galra van, wrecking the rear end of the van, but remaining unscathed himself. Keith has a feeling the whole story might be a bit exaggerated, but he’ll take their word for it.

“Yeah” Pidge grins after hearing Lance and Hunks story. “I’d say we had it pretty rough too” she teases, sharing a knowing look with Shiro, who grins back at her. They don’t share their story, but Keith seems to catch onto the idea that they might not have much of a story to tell.

“I’m pleased to hear you all found your designated Lions!” Allura greets them, jumping into the conversation.

“Now, I have good news and bad news” She adds on, giving a pointed look towards Keith.

“You found the Red Lion?”

“That is the good news” She agrees, with a slow nod to her head.

“The bad news?” Shiro asks, stepping up behind Keith.

“The bad news, is it’s locked inside a Galra base” Keith curses mentally. If he’s got to sneak into Galra base to get that Lion, so be it. But he knows that it’s going to be very, very risky, especially for him.

“Good News!” Coran interjects, as he passes through, heading towards the kitchen. Probably to get a snack or drink for Ryou.

“The Galra Base is relatively close by, and has already sent us a warning message, threatening to destroy the castle if we don’t hand over the Lions we already have”

“How is that good news?” Pidge asks, throwing Coran a confused glare, but the man just shrugs, and disappears into the kitchen.

“It’s good news, because their message gave us their coordinates, and because it gives us an opportunity to create a plan”

 

The plan, the one Allura was apparently speaking of, would be that Lance and Hunk would pretend to hand over their Lions at the main entrance to the base, whilst Shiro phased Keith and Pidge through a back wall.

This particular Galra base is a large warehouse built like an insane maze on the inside. Pidge had managed to get into the system, and get a rough blueprint of the place, but there were plenty of rooms built in here, and none of them labeled.

 Unfortunately, they didn’t know where the Red Lion is being held. Keith could tell you where the prisoners are held, he realizes. Once they’re inside, and his eyes are meet with familiar rusted iron walls and dim purple lights. He recognizes the lay out of the hall, and the maze laid out for him on pidges map. He rescued Shiro from this place.

“Hold on” Shiro gasps, stumbling back a bit, shoulder ramming into the old faded metal wall. Keith was hoping Shiro wouldn’t realize. Hoping he wouldn’t recognize the building. But it’s too late, he can see the memories flooding Shiro’s brain. He only hopes It’s the only memory that returns for now.

“I know… I know this place…” He looks around frantically, like he’s waiting for someone to pop up around the corner and attack him. His eyes are wide, and wild. Keith tries to calm him by placing a hand on his shoulder.

“This is… This is where I was held… I was kept here” Shiro gasps again, his eyes finally settling, slowly wandering down to Keith’s gentle grip on his arm.

“If this is where you were held, do you think their other prisoners still here?” Pidge asks, voice full of hope as she steals his attention away.

“I don’t know… Maybe?” Shiro hesitates, like he’s struggling just to think about it.

“Then we have to help them, we need to free them”

“Pidge, I’m sorry, we don’t have time to for that. Our top priority is that Lion. We need to get it and get out of here.” Shiro shakes his head with a deep sigh.

“I’m not leaving here until we check it out” Pidge argues, crossing her arms over her chest. Her stance, and the entirety of her body movement stiffens, showing that she is not going to budge on this, but Shiro is right.

“Pidge, I know it sucks, but this? With the Galra? This is a war now, we are at war” Shiro tries to tell her. “And sometimes at war, you have to make really hard decisions” She shakes her head at him.   
“My family might be in there Shiro! I am not leaving until I know!” She snaps at him, and he suddenly softens. Keith watches the exchange with wide eyes full of curiosity. Before this, he had his suspicions. It’s hard not to, when She’s the spitting image of him, but now he has full, real confirmation of it.

“Alright, I remember where the Prisoners are held, I’ll lead you there. Keith, Keith you’ll have to find the Red Lion on your own” Shiro bends suddenly.

“What?” Keith asks, shocked. He wants to find Pidges family too, of course, if there is a chance they’re here, then he’s all for going after them. But he was expecting a compromise. He was expecting to get the Lion first and then the prisoners or vice versa. He wasn’t expecting to be sent off solo.

“By myself?” He double checks, and Shiro just nods to him, shifting to rest all his focus on Keith. Placing a hand on either side of Keith’s head.

“You’ll be fine, I know you can do this. If you get close enough, you’ll be able to sense it. And remember” Shiro smiles at him, and gives his shoulders a slight squeeze

“Patience yields focus” and Keith almost laughs. He nearly laughs because of course he remembers. Shiro told it to him nearly every day back in school. How could he every possibly forget that dumb mantra.

“Alright” He agrees, taking the quintessence tracker from Pidge, so he can push him in the right direction.

“I’ll see you soon” He says, at the same time Shiro says “Good Luck” Then they take off in opposite directions. With the lingering warmth of Shiro’s touch, and his trust, Keith has a sudden flare of confidence rush through his body. He follows the detector all the way down the hall, until he finds a fork in the path.

“Fuck” He curses, stuck in the middle of the divergence, sparing quick looks down both halls, the detector giving him no clue. He’s trying to reach out, trying to sense which way he should go, but he can’t think of anything. A Galra sentry approaching from the right hallway makes up his mind for him, and he bolts down the left hall. He runs for what seems like forever, only a slight limp to his step thanks to him run in with the Garrison outside of the Blue Lion cave earlier. There had been four guards roaming the forest, and he took three of them out with ease. The last one put up more of a fight and gave Keith a good kick in the back of his knee. It knocked him off balance, and nearly lost him the fight, but he still came out on top. His knee however, still hurt like the dickens.

“What the hell” He groans in frustration, after running for several minutes, he somehow reappears in that same fork in the pathway. He looks around for a split second before taking the right hallway this time, but once again, minutes of running only lead him back to the same spot. He tries a couple more times, before he gives up, and collapses against the wall with a deep sigh.   
“Alright, fine” He growls, shutting his eyes, and taking a deep breath.

“Patience” he reminds himself, trying to clear all his thoughts away, focusing only on the red lion. “Patience yields focus” He repeats shiro, repeats it several times between deep breaths. Pushing to empty his mind of any useless thoughts, thinking only of Voltron and that damn lion. Till suddenly the image of that beautiful, shining red motorcycle comes popping into his thoughts, and he can practically hear the purr of her engine, telling him where to go.

“Got you!” His eyes pop back open with a new determination as he shifts his body back around and starts for the complete opposite direction of the split hallway. He runs, and runs. Following the exact path he sees in his mind. Following every curve of the wall, every sharp turn, until he comes to a blank wall. The Red Lion, his Lion is behind this wall. He can feel it.

He looks around quickly, making sure no one is there to watch, before he softly holds his hand up to the wall and closes his eyes. The Galra, as stupid as they are, use blood tech. Most of their technology can be accessed or activated by sensing for a particular sequence of quintessence that the Galra organization is known for. In their mind, the Galra assume all their experiments are either still with them, or dead. They have no idea that the Blade of Marmora is made entirely of Galra experiments.

Just as he expected, the door reacts to that small strand of Galra he inherited from his mother, and the door splits open. Keith rushes inside without second thought, mind too concerned with the shining piece of metal that sits elegantly in the middle of the room. As he approaches it, he suspects that it has the same invisible forcefield the Blue Lion had, and as he gets closer, and places his hand in the air, his suspicions are confirmed. When it doesn’t open up right away like it did for Lance, He cocks an eyebrow.

“Open up, let’s go?” Keith greets the Lion, but the shield remains in place.

“Seriously?” He growls in frustration. “Come on? It’s me, Keith, your paladin? You’re supposed to be my Lion!” He insists, but nothing happens, and he begins to panic. He can’t be rejected. He needs this. He worked too hard for this. He needs to be the Red Paladin, he’s too far gone to go back now.

He bangs his fist against the air, as if he could shatter the forcefield, just as the door to the room springs open once again, and a group of ten Galra drones march in.

“Fuck” He curses under his breathe, watching them in fear as they move closer and closer, raising their guns, ready to aim.

“No” He mutters, glancing behind him quickly to the Lion that waits for him. “No. No, I gave up too much for this! You’re not getting this Lion!” He shouts, and without a second thought, he draws the blade that had been carefully concealed behind his back. The blade he shouldn’t even have on him, the blade he’s been using all his life. He grips it tightly in his hand, and lunges forward at full speed, a battle cry in his throat, not giving the Sentries time to shoot at him. He rushes for the first three, slashing through their guns, and puncturing their armor. He dodges all the bullets sent his way with grace, letting them breeze right past him. He Cuts down another five, one bullet grazes too close to his arm for his liking, breaking his skin. He hisses in pain but doesn’t slow down. He can’t slow down. Not from the pain in his leg, or the new pain his arm. The disappointment of being rejected as the red paladin won’t stop him either. He’s set his eyes on something, he’s made his deal, and there is no loophole for it.

He’s going to keep fighting. He will keep fighting. He’ll take down the last two drones with ease, and he’ll stand his ground against the next round that he can hear stomping forward in the hallway, only minutes away, and waiting to attack. He’ll keep his fight as long as he can, as long as he needs to.

But perhaps not as long as he thinks. One minute he’s knocking out the last of the first round of sentries, and standing his ground, keeping himself in fighting position, the next he’s being greeted by the loud thrum of a motor, and he’s nearly knocked off his feet by the Red Lion. Suddenly behind him and roaring with life.  He doesn’t know when or why she activated, hell, Keith didn’t even know the Lions could move on their own, but he was not complaining. He pulls himself onto the motorbike  as quickly as possible, and revs the engine nice and loud, like a warning, before clutching down as hard as he can on the gas, bolting out of that room, and zipping past several rounds of Galra he knows damn well he’d never have survived on his own.

“Good Kitty” He thanks his Lion, leaning forward a bit, pushing the bike to go even faster. He maneuvers himself out of the building, Red seemingly guiding them more then he himself is. His skin burns with excitement as the rush and speed push his hair back. The pure, raw energy of the Red Lion melting into his skin, and flowing into his veins with a sense of life and power that he’s never felt before in his life. He finally understands what the others were talking about. That connection. That feeling of the Lion talking to you, of the Lion bonding with you. He can hear Red, see her, clear as day in his mind, showing him how to get out of the warehouse, and back to the castle. He can hear her thanking him.

 

 

They all stand together in the garage, their Perspective Lions resting behind them, all purring with life, motors humming in sync until one wall of the large garage collapses, and the large, magnificent beast that is the Black Lion is revealed. Shiro nervously steps forward with the encouragement of his team, and gently, slowly, he places his hand on the handle bar of the Motorcycle.

Instantly, they are all greeted by the loudest, proudest sounding roar any of them had ever heard.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Pretty simple chapter, but I hope you guys like it! Chapter 10 will be up in the next week!


	10. Training

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> "You’re a team. You five are Voltron” She scolds, glancing around at them. “From now on, you can not act like strangers. I don’t care if you’ve known eachother for years, Or if you just met today. From now on, You’re Voltron. You are a team. You need to act like it. You need to learn to rely on eachother, trust one another, work with one another, and know eachother. You cannot fight together if you can barely sit and hold hands together”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Goddamn, it's been a while huh. I swear I didnt forget about this story, life just sucks and is currently kicking my ass.  
> I hope you guys like this chapter, it changed several times, took a lot of work and with the help of my wonderful Beta I think we got it where it needs to be. Enjoy!

When Allura said ‘training’, Shiro’s mind went to working out, fighting the gladiator bot, and doing some test runs. He didn’t think it meant them all in the middle of the training deck, sitting in a circle with their legs crossed underneath them, and holding hands.

“We look like my first-grade class…” Keith grumbles, glancing around the room at all the other paladins. He wasn’t so happy about this particular training activity, and he seemed even less happy about having to hold hands with Lance. Keith only stopped complaining when he realized that Shiro got to hold his other hand. On Shiro’s left was pidge, her hand tiny and a bit shaky in his much larger one. Attached to her other side was hunk, who held on to Coran, who held the left hand of the Princess. Allura’s right hand is taken by an overly excited Lance, whom completes the circle.

“It can’t be that bad, Keith, have a little faith in Allura” Shiro says. He tries to settle the youngers nerves with a soft smile and a gentle squeeze of their locked hands, but all he receives is a small frown.

“So, what are we doing here, Princess? What’s the point in this?” Pidge speaks up, and Shiro nods in agreement.

“How is this training? All this seems to be doing is making everyone uncomfortable” Keith adds. And well, he’s not wrong. Lance is staring at his and Allura’s conjoined hands, completely enamored, while on the other side, he and Keith are forming a sorry excuse of hand holding. Keith’s hand in Shiro’s feels unusually cold and clammy, which is odd considering Keith typically runs hot, and he usually grips Shiro’s hand like it’s a life line. Pidge is a bit shaken up, and she can’t seem to look anyone in the eye. Hunk is always nervous, but he’s teetering a bit from side to side to show he’s growing impatient. Shiro himself is growing more nervous by the second with the awkward pressure from his comrades. The only ones who seem to be calm and unaffected are Coran and Allura, although, Allura does seem a tiny bit annoyed by the intense gaze she’s receiving from Lance.

“That’s exactly the point” Coran points out, shooting an amused glance to Keith, whose scowl tightens.

“The point here is to make us uncomfortable?”

“Then the point’s been proven, can we stop now” Hunk nods anxiously. They’ve been sitting like this for nigh on six minutes now, and each passing minute seems to make the situation worse.

“No” Allura shakes her head. “The point here is that you are already uncomfortable”

“Of course, we’re uncomfortable, we’re strangers being forced to hold hands” Well, technically, they weren’t all strangers. Shiro has known Pidge for years; he and Keith… Well, obviously he and Keith were anything but strangers. Strangely enough, Lance and Hunk were also fairly familiar with eachother. They were all in the same class as Pidge at the Garrison… The year Keith was supposed to be in, but he dropped out of when he couldn’t deal with his grief, so the three only really knew Keith by name. Hence, they weren’t all complete strangers, but they weren’t exactly friends either.

“But you’re not strangers. You’re a team. You five are Voltron” She scolds, glancing around at them. “From now on, you can not act like strangers. I don’t care if you’ve known eachother for years” She shoots a sharp glare in Keith and Shiro’s direction, “Or if you just met today. From now on, You’re Voltron. You are a team. You need to act like it. You need to learn to rely on eachother, trust one another, work with one another, and know eachother. You cannot fight together if you can barely sit and hold hands together”

“So, this is your solution? How is holding hands going to make us a better team?” Pidge argues, holding up both her hands to display the connections she’s made on both sides.

“It’s not”

“Princess, Please, if you wanted to hold hands with me, you could have just asked” Lance nervously laughs.

“That’s not why we are holding hands. We haven’t even started the real exercise yet, I just wanted to see how long you could all last like this, to see what we’re dealing with” She sighs.

“I’m guessing we didn’t pass then” Shiro groans, and she shakes her head.

“No, as you are now, you’re all a poor excuse for a team”

“Alright, let’s just start the actual exercise then, please” The longer this goes on, the more uncomfortable and irritated Keith gets, and Shiro can’t help but feel like it’s pointed at him.

“Okay then. Please, everyone, close your eyes” Allura instructs with a curt nod of her head. They all hesitate, but Shiro knows it’s better to just trust her, so he slowly lets his eyes fall shut. After a second, he assumes everyone has followed her instructions.

“Now, I want you all to focus on something important to you, don’t be afraid to pick something personal. Let your barriers fall, don’t hide anything” Her voice slows down, it becomes calm and soothing. Luring them into a relaxed state. That’s when Shiro realizes what she’s doing.

Allura is mind linking them. Allura has some telepathic abilities, she can link her thoughts to other things and people. By creating a chain with the hand holding, she’s made a direct link back to her, so she can easily connect their minds.

Everyone’s thoughts seem to form and simplify into images. He’s not sure if that’s just how they are, or if that’s Allura’s doing. Shiro’s own mind goes straight to the Garrison. That first day of wandering around and exploring the campus. Keith was with him, they walked the whole school together, talking and laughing and planning for their future. He thought about confessing to Keith that day. He thought about kissing him goodbye when he left, but he was too chicken shit to do it. Now he’s sure if he’s thankful for that, or mad at himself for it. Thankfully, Shiro’s thoughts were just summed up into a picture of the main entrance to the School. It’d be a terrible way to confess to Keith, to show him a literal mental image of them kissing, while everyone else could see it too.

There was a family photo too, a large family, happy and smiling. Lance right in the middle. Then there was a Kitchen, large and a bit messy, with a girl standing in the middle; Short brown hair and tough tan skin. She wears a large, loose apron and she’s holding a large bowl filled with some kind of batter. That must be Hunks. Pidges is clear, and obvious to him. It’s her, in an old, faded sundress, her hair long and wild in the wind. She stands proudly next to her older brother, who she now mirrors almost exactly. She chose to think of the same day Shiro did. Keith’s is a little unclear. But he thinks it’s Keiths apartment. The tiny little room blurry and unfocused.

“Aww, Pidge is thinking about his girlfriend” Lance coos from across the room, and Shiro nearly chokes. The statement is so painfully far from the truth. He can’t really blame Lance though, because the Pidge sitting beside him barely looks like the one in the picture. She’s come a long way from the little Katie he remembers. But the comment shakes Pidge, and her image begins to shake as much as Keith’s. Making it so hard to see. Shiro wonders what Keith is thinking. His image feels forced, like he’s trying to pick and chose what to show. Why the apartment? He wants to know. Out of all the things in his life, why does Keith choose the apartment?

“Keith, Pidge. I need you both to focus” Allura scolds.

“Tell Lance to back off then!”

“Hey! Don’t blame me!”

“Shiro, Stop poking!” Keith snarls beside him, and Shiro flinches, eyes popping open. He hadn’t even realized he was trying to look closer at Keith image. He didn’t even think it was possible. He thought he could only see what they showed, but apparently, if you think to much about it, they could feel it.

“Sorry, Pidge, but that’s just so cute” Hunk chuckles a bit, at the same time Shiro regards Keith with a nervous look.

“Sorry, I didn’t realize…”

“Well then knock it off”

“Hunk, drop it!”

“Please try and Focus!” Allura scolds them all, bringing all their attention over to her.

“Tell them to stop digging around in our heads then!” Pidge warns, she glances at Keith, very briefly, and he nods in agreement. It’s an odd form of silent communication that Shiro wasn’t expecting.

“What? I thought we were all digging around in each other’s heads? That was the point, right? You can dig around in my brain if you want. I’m open” Hunk shrugs.

“No, that’s not the point here. No digging around” Keith growls.

“It’s not like we can help it, Mullet. You’re being super sketchy over there with your blurry, shitty apartment, and Pidge is over here thinking about his cute littler girlfriend, so yeah, we’re going to be curious and dig a little” Lance argues, but it’s the least affective argument ever. Pidges face goes bright red, and She pops to her feet, breaking the chain, and making the images vanish.

“Ugh that’s it! I can handle being a team with you guys, I can fight with you, but my thoughts are _my_ thoughts, so stay out of them, alright!” She snaps, crossing her arms over her chest.

“Pidge…” Shiro tries to think of something to calm her down with, but that seems to be enough. She looks down at him and hesitates a second before sighing in defeat.  
“Sorry, I’m just… I’m just tired… It’s been a long day…” He nods his head in agreement. It as been a long day, and they’re all probably tired. He also feels for her, he knows the day she was thinking of, and it’s not an easy one.

“You’re right, okay? We’ll take a break and come back to training in a bit…” She nods her head, but before she or anyone else can say anything, Keith is up, and quickly heading for the exit.

“Come get me when the break is over,” He dismisses himself without giving anyone the chance to argue, and Shiro frowns. Steel eyes are glued tight to Keith walking away. He glares intensely at the door as if Keith were still there, as if he could will Keith to come back. There’s no denying it now, Keith is definitely mad at him, He just doesn’t understand why.

 

 

They take a thirty-minute break. Pidge leaves to find Keith before they start training again. Shiro wanted to be the one to do it, feeling bad enough he didn’t go after Keith in the first place, but he also knows Keith needs space. Pidge volunteered to get him before Shiro could. She doesn’t come back with him though. Pidge walks through the doors, alone, and says Keith was playing with Ryou, and that he’s right behind her.

Shiro’s heart thumps in his chest. Keith left to play with Ryou. His nephew. Playing with the kid and giving him attention should have been Shiro’s job, but he wasn’t the one to think of it. Keith was. Keith was looking out for a child that wasn’t his. He was doing a job he wasn’t obligated to do at this hour. Keith was off the clock. Anything he did now for Ryou had to be purely out of own self-interest. He knows Keith enough to know that. Something about that little thought makes his heart swell.

When Keith finally enters, and sits back down beside him, he nearly forgets that Keith’s mad at him. He’s oddly enamored when the red paladin joins them, and despite being upset, he still choses to sit close to Shiro’s right.

They don’t say anything to each other though. Keith doesn’t look Shiro in the eye, and Shiro doesn’t know what to say to him. So, they keep silent in each other’s company until Allura pushes them into another exercise.

 

The invisible maze isn’t easy. Shiro’s been through it before, but he at least managed to get through it a bit farther than the others did this time. Hunk was too nervous to fully understand Pidge’s instructions, and Lance was clearly upset about letting Keith lead him. They gave up on that exercise when Lance took out his earpiece and threw it up to Keith in the watch room.

Then Coran suggested blindfolding them, and setting them lose on their Bikes, to see how well they could bond with their lions, and hopefully see through them.

That was very quickly dismissed, seeing as they all saw it as a death wish. None of them were willing to blindly skid through traffic for the sake of ‘bonding.’

So Allura finally agreed to put them up against the gladiator bot.

“You can’t fight without the right gear…” that was her explanation for leading them back to the garage, and opening up a small, mysterious room that Shiro had never seen before.

“Woah…. Are these for us?” Lance and Pidge are the first to rush into the armory, followed by Hunk, Keith, and lastly, Shiro. The room is about the same size as one of their bedrooms, with a couple separate doors. He assumes that they are changing rooms. There are five display cases. Each one displaying a suit of armor, very similar to the Lion Shadow uniform, only the markings were in different colors. Red, Blue, Green, and Yellow, where Shiro’s had black. The fifth, and center display case is empty.

“You’ve been planning this for some time, huh?” He huffs, he had never realized before that the armor he wore was the original black paladin uniform. Allura’s eyes sparkle, and she gives a small, knowing grin.

“Why else would I name you ‘Lion Shadow’?” She jokes, and Shiro can’t help but give a small chuckle. He had always wondered that, but never really asked. She gave him medical care, food, clothes, food, and a roof over his head. Who was he to question her when she gave him a name?

Shiro dismisses himself to put on his uniform. He’s always found the costume to be…odd. It wasn’t uncomfortable, but he wouldn’t call it comfortable either. It was a perfect fit, too perfect. The body glove conformed to his body like a second layer of skin; clinging to him at every point. It was thick but breathable. The armor was heavy but not clunky, attaching to his limbs. It felt scarily natural. Despite how weird it felt, he actually often forgot he was wearing it.

When he comes back, everyone is in their own armor, and the colors matched their Lions. Keith looks like he’s still having trouble with the back plate though, and Shiro sees the opportunity to slide in, and adjust it for him.

“Thanks” Keith grumbles in response, rolling his shoulders awkwardly, trying to adjust himself to the armor. He seems to find it more uncomfortable then the others…he also wears it better then the others… Maybe it’s Shiro’s prejudice, but he can’t help but think Keith looks incredible in the armor. The skin-tight body suit below the metal clinging to his body and showing off every curve, and the pieces of metal armor themselves popping in bright contrast to Keiths darker nature. He makes the armor look good, but then again, Shiro always thinks Keith looks good.

“Anytime” Shiro tells him, reaching up to pat his shoulder. Keith glances for a second, and then returns his attention to Allura, whose pulled out a long, rectangular case.

“These are your Bayard’s. The chosen weapon of the paladin. Like your Lions, it will respond to your quintessence, and form the weapon best suited to you” They all step forward, to get a closer look at the Bayard’s. They’re a triangle like shape, with a bar through the center to act as a grip, colored in the same manner as the suits. They’re perfectly fitted and shaped to the hand, and when each Knight reaches out to grab their assigned Bayard, the weapon glows at their touch. Just like the suits, one is missing, but this time, it’s something Shiro doesn’t already have.

“I’m sorry Shiro… We lost the black Bayard when we lost its paladin…” She apologizes, setting down the empty box, and giving Shiro a sullen smile. Shiro himself shrugs, ignoring the disappointment for not being able to join the team in their excitement for the weapon, and holds up his right arm.

“It’s alright, I’ve made do so far without it, right?” He returns to quietly watching the others activate their weapons. Hunks turns into a rather bulky canon like gun, that he’s amazed Hunk can even hold up right. Lances turns into some type of riffle. Keiths automatically shifts into a long-jagged sword and shield. He looks at Pidge, expectantly, waiting for hers to change into something, but it doesn’t. The edge just seems to glow a bit brighter, but she seems pleased with it. Making a few swiping motions to test it out.

“Awww, how cute, the little guy got a little bayard” Lance makes the terrible mistake of leaning over Pidges shoulder to coo at her weapon. Shiro watches in absolute terror as a sly grin pulls up at her lips, and swings back her arm till the point of her Bayard slams against his stomach. It shocks him, causing him to yelp, and collapse to his knees. Pidge snickers at her victory.

“Yeah, I think it’s pretty cute too” She grins, and beside him, he hears Keith snort.

“I knew I liked her…” He mumbles to himself, but Shiro definitely hears it, and gives a small smile.

“Enough! These are not toys! You need to learn how to properly use them!” Allura shouts, silencing them all. She waits a minute, giving Lance time to stand back up, and giving them all time to settle down. Then she gestures for everyone to follow her out of the room. Lance follows her eagerly, then Pidge and Hunk as they silently wonder together about the mechanics behind their new ‘magic’ weapons. Then Keith and Shiro walk out together. Stepping in sync, in complete silence.

“You know how to use a sword?” Shiro asks, gesturing down the red and silver blade that Keiths Bayard formed. It was the best thing he could think of to say, and Keith seems to realize this, when he glances down between the sword and Shiro.

“Guess you’re about to find out” He shrugs, picking up his pace a bit to set him ahead of Shiro. Shiro sighs at his failed attempt at conversation and follows after Keith as fast as he can.

Keith is definitely mad at him… Pissed really, but he still can’t figure out why. He’s trying to read him, trying to talk to him, but Keith just keeps shutting him out.

“Watch each other’s backs, fight as a team and take it down together” Those are Allura’s instructions to them as she shuts the door to the training deck and disappears to watch from the safety of the viewing room.

“Uhhh, what exactly are we taking down?” Hunk asks, voice quivering as he backs close to the rest of the group. They’ve formed a sort of circle, trying to keep their eye open, because you never know where Allura will drop the bot from.

“The Gladiator” Shiro responds, anxiously observing the area, waiting for the machine.

“What’s ‘The Gladiator’?” Lance asks somewhere behind him. Guess Allura never described to them what it was they’re fighting.

“The Gladiator is a fighting machine that Alfor and Coran programmed years ago to help train people in combat” He explains for them. He’s growing more anxious, surveying the ceiling and the ground around him. The bot can come from multiple different hidden entrances. But where is it? Why is Allura taking so long to drop it? What is she waiting for?

“We’re fighting a robot!” Pidge shouts, in what reads as excitement, she shouldn’t be happy though. The Gladiator isn’t as fun as she’s making it sound.

“We’re fighting a robot!” Hunk shouts in panic, at the same time Shiro hears the sound of metal hitting the ground, followed by the sound of Hunks massive canon going off. The Gladiators been dropped. Shiro quickly snaps into action. The Gladiator is tall, a few inches taller then Shiro, but it’s thin. Made of smooth and clean white metal. It moves fast, and with ease, wielding a long training staff as it’s weapon.

The bot knocks out both Hunk and Pidge in a matter of seconds, sending both to the ground with it’s staff. Lance and Keith try to rush it nearly at the same time. Keith just seconds ahead of Lance. He lunges for it, while Lance shoots. Had they had more thought process and coordination to their attack, they might have actually succeeded in doing damage. But the Gladiator Bot swings its staff right into the center of Keith’s stomach, and sends him flying right into Lance, flinging them both across the room.

Shiro’s first instinct is to rush to Keith. To check on him, and make sure he’s okay. But he can’t. Because the Gladiator is rushing right for him. Last second, he blocks the staff, and keeps it at bay with his right arm. The sturdiness of the prosthetic can withstand the harsh metal, but The Gladiator quickly pulls back, and knocks Shiro a couple feet back with a harsh kick. He’s not as quick the second time the bot swings its staff down towards him.

 

 

 -------

 

 

 

Keith’s on the other side of the room, back on the ground and stomach throbbing with pain but he doesn’t dare miss the sound of Shiro grunting and the sound of metal banging against metal. He props himself up, ignoring the burning in his gut, to check on Shiro. He’s on the complete opposite side of the room, and Keith watches in anger as the bot kicks Shiro in the chest, sending him stumbling back. His jaw clenches when he notices the way Shiro’s eyes narrow in pain. Then he realizes something, and fear strikes through him, like a spike of ice shooting through his veins. The Gladiator bot has repositioned its staff, ready to strike down on Shiro again. But Shiro hasn’t realized this yet. He isn’t ready yet. He notices too late, and he’s not fast enough to block it. Shiro won’t be fast enough. _But I am_ , he thinks to himself. He _is_ fast enough. He’s fast enough to make it across the room to Shiro and take the blow for him.

He doesn’t need to think about it, doesn’t need to weigh the pros and cons. He just needs to know that he might be able to make it. So, he goes for it. Keith rushes across the room, at his full speed not caring if they clock it or not, and he makes it in front of Shiro just barely in time. The Gladiators staff clashes against his raised sword, instead of knocking down on Shiro’s shoulder. The metal pole clashes and grinds against his Bayard as he struggles to keep it at bay.

“Shiro” He huffs, glancing over his shoulder briefly to check on his friend. Shiro’s stands behind him, looking like he’s ready to crumple to the ground on his knees, blinking up at Keith with wide eyes.

“Shiro, are you okay?” He repeats himself with a heavy breath, trying to split his focus between the insistently pushing enemy, and his friend, because Shiro really doesn’t look okay. Shiro looks like he’s gone.

“Shiro” He growls, the pressure of The Gladiator increases, and he stumbles to keep his sword up. If he was alone, he might be able to take this thing out. But he’s not alone, he’s got six sets of eyes surveying him, watching his every move. Six sets of eyes waiting for him to slip up and reveal himself. He has to keep his powers at bay. He has to keep who he is hidden. If he kicks this bot’s ass right now like he wants to, it would raise too many questions. He doesn’t need to beat it right now, he just needs to protect Shiro. But He needs Shiro to at least move out of the way. He needs him to bring his consciousness back to earth and help him knock this thing out. But Shiro’s not answering him.

When he looks back at Shiro again, those wide grey eyes are filled with shock and a fear that Keith doesn’t understand. The worry that crashes down on him makes him soften, and falter just enough for that dumb fighter bot to pull back and make a new swing at Keith. It knocks him back into Shiro, sending them both flying to the floor with shouts. He lands half way in Shiro’s lap, his left shoulder pressed against Shiro’s right. The Gladiator moves swiftly striking a pose with it’s staff raised in the air, and then it goes stiff.

“That simulation was set low enough for a child! Ryou could have fared better then you five!” Behind him Allura’s voice rings out, accompanied by the sound of a door shifting open.

“That simulation was too advanced, even for Shiro!” Keith growls, he’s quick to stand to his feet, standing protectively in front of his friend, ignoring the way his whole-body aches.

“You should have been able to handle it” She snaps right back, placing her hands on her hips. Keith gnaws at his lip. Behind him he can feel his fellow paladins watching intensely. Now is not the time for him to go off. He can’t lose his cool here. Shiro was almost badly hurt… Keith was pretty badly hurt himself… but he just got here. He’s not going to get kicked out for having a petty fight with the Princess. He needs this.

“You know what, Allura?” He takes a moment, to take in a deep breath, and calm himself.

“I think we’ve had enough training for today” He still has a bit of a bite to him, but that’s just how he is. It’s a lot calmer then what he wanted to say.

No one argues with him. Allura and Coran stare at him defiantly, but they know, he can see it in their eyes, they know they’d be poking at the fire if they were to challenge him now. Keith has always been a force to reckon with, they seem to acknowledge that.

Everyone follows Keith’s lead, and slowly they all dissipate out of the training deck.

Hunk finds his way to the kitchen to make dinner, but the only people who could stomach eating are him and Lance. Keith takes one bite of mashed potatoes, and his stomach twists so hard at the sensation he nearly throws up. He thanks the Yellow paladin for the effort. For a minute, when he pushes away from the dining room table, he contemplates where to go. He’s in no condition to run home. Nor does he really feel like calling himself a cab. But something about returning to Shiro’s room tonight bugs him. It just doesn’t feel right.

“Keith!” He’s walking down the hallway, as slowly as he can, both out of dread, and to keep from twisting at the large bruise he can feel forming over his chest and stomach.

“What do you want?” He doesn’t bother to look back at her. He doesn’t want to. He fears if he does, he’ll start the conversation he wanted to go for earlier.

“I… I took the liberty to prepare a guest room for you…Shiro told me once that you really valued privacy, so I thought you might like one… Or just the option of it, you know… even if you don’t use it…” Her words are slow, and far in-between. She’s nervous, upset. If he looked at her, he’s sure she would be twiddling her thumbs or twisting a piece of her hair.

“Actually, your highness, I do appreciate that” He’ll admit he’s relieved to hear he has another option. He’s very grateful for her thoughtfulness. He hears her sigh in what’s probably a bit of relief.

“I’m glad…I want you to feel comfortable here…” He can hear her quicker he pace, trying to get closer. Maybe even when he’s slow, Keith’s still going too fast.

 “It’s alright. I get it” He nods his head. “You’re just trying to push us, you want to make sure we’re ready for Voltron” He finally takes a glance at her, and her crystal eyes are sparkling with hope and content. He didn’t want her to think he was angry with her, well, he was but he wasn’t that angry. He was angrier throughout the day for Shiro, who hesitated to have his back all day. Shiro was hiding something from him he could feel it. It’s understandable to keep secrets, he’d be a hypocrite if that’s why he was mad. He had a long, long list of secrets right now. What he doesn’t like is the way he feels Shiro wants to tell him something but refuses to. The mind rummaging didn’t help either.

To be completley honest though, he wasn’t really mad at anyone but himself. He was less mad at Allura and Shiro and more just generally annoyed about the day and their situation. He may or may not have taken a tiny bit of that out on the others.

“Here we are, this is your room.” She stops him at the edge of the hallway, four doors away from Shiro’s room.

“Thank you, Allura. I really appreciate it.” He glances at the door, hand already on the knob. After the day he’s had, he really could use a goodnight sleep.

“You know, Keith…” Her voice is the only thing stopping him from busting through the door and jumping into his guest bed. “I would hug you right now, but Shiro said you’re not a fan of physical contact” She smiles at him, but that smile turns into a knowing grin, and something glistens in her eyes.

“Though, you two could have fooled me” He wastes no time after that, to retreat into his guest room, a deep blush rising from the highs of his cheeks all the way to his ears, trying to ignore the insinuation, and the distant sound of her laughter.

The guest room is plain and simple. Cold tile floors, white walls. There’s a plain bed with gray sheets and blankets, and a bedside table, and a silver dresser. There’s also a door to what Keith assumes is an attached bathroom. It takes him a few minutes to strip the armor, and place it in the dresser.  He removes the blade from his boots, where it had been carefully hidden. He places that underneath the bed, wedged into the bedframe. There for easy, and quick access. But also, secure, where no one could think to look or really see if they did. He crawls into the cold, unfamiliar bed, and buries himself in the freshly washed blankets, face stuffed into the crisp white pillows.

He’s not sure how long he laid there. How long he tossed and turned, begging sleep to come to him. It could have been hours, or it could have been five minutes. He’s not sure.

All he knows is that he just couldn’t get his brain to shut off. It was running faster than he ever could, going over the entire day, over and over again. His entire life seems to sprawl out in his thoughts.

Reminding him of everything he had to struggle through, everything he had to fight, and everything he had to give up.

Everything he sacrificed, just to be with Shiro, and he was choosing to spend the night in a damn guest room instead of being with him, even when he was just a few steps down the hall.

His thoughts were relentless. They wouldn’t let him rest, wouldn’t let him sleep. Eventually, when he gave up, he kicked up the blankets, and scrambled to his feet. A new determination settling in his chest.

Awkwardness be damned. Everything be damned. He fought too fucking hard to stay by Shiro’s side, he might as well enjoy it. Might as well take these little risks. If Shiro doesn’t like it, then he’s going to have to speak up and say something. Until then, he’s stuck with him.

Keith makes his way across the guest room, exposed skin freezing against the air and the tile of the floor, but excitement and need keep him warm. He’s going to Shiro. He’s going to crawl into bed with him, curl himself up in his arms. He deserves it. He deserves a goodnight sleep, and that’s the only way he’s ever going to get it now.

He sneaks out of the room, gently pulling the door open, and then gently shutting it behind him. He’s not sure if the others are in their rooms or not, he’s trying to be polite. Being quiet because he doesn’t want to wake them, not because he’s doing anything bad or weird. He should still be careful though…If someone does catch him, well, they’d have a lot of questions he’s not sure he’d want to answer.

He gets two steps away from his room, before he runs into a wall. He wants to blame the dim lights of the hallway, and the way his disheveled hair blocks his eyes, but then two large hands come down to rest on his shoulders, and the wall suddenly sighs.

“Keith?” He gasps in shock and confusion, and without thinking about it, or the consequences, Keith leans into those strong hands.

“Shiro” He sighs in relief, eyes flickering up, barely managing to find Shiro’s silver hair and steel eyes in the darkness.

“What are you doing out here?” Shiro asks him, glancing over his head at the guest bedroom door.

“I could ask you the same thing?” Because Shiro’s in his sweatpants and a tank top, and he just so happens to be right outside the guest room.

“Allura told me she gave you a guest room…I was uh… I was looking for you…” He admits, and Keith can’t help but smile.

“Then we have something in common”

“You were looking for yourself?” Shiro asks, teasingly, eyes glinting with a bit of mischief.

“No, Idiot. I was looking for you” Shiro grins at him like it’s the greatest news he’s ever received.

“Well then, you found me”

“Actually, I thought I ran into a wall at first” Keith decides to tease him back.

“A wall?” He pretends to be offended, but Keith knows he thinks it’s funny.

“Mhm. Nearly broke my nose too” His hands come up to rest against Shiro’s chest, his fingers thrum against the muscle a bit to emphasize his point. Shiro lets out a quite laugh.

“That wouldn’t be good, we can’t have you hurting yourself. Maybe I should make sure you don’t run into any more walls?”  He hums in thought for a second, as if he’s seriously considering something, but Keith knows he has something planned. He just doesn’t know what. He looks up at Shiro, one eyebrow raised, trying to figure out what on earth the other man is thinking.

“Oh, I know” He fake gasps at a false realization. Then he’s suddenly leaning down, one hand traveling from Keiths shoulder to his back, and the other drops down to his legs. In a matter of seconds, Shiro is hoisting Keith up into his arms like a bride. “If you don’t walk, you can’t run into any walls” which is probably the lamest and stupidest excuse Keith has ever heard. But he’s far too embarrassed, and admittedly thrilled to argue. He settles on burying his face in Shiro’s shoulder and wrapping his arms around his neck.

“If you drop me…” He warns, and Shiro chuckles, the sound making him shiver with delight. “I would never” He whispers back. Shiro’s steps are careful and steady as he carries Keith back to his room. Keith holds on tighter as Shiro moves his upper hand to open the door. Inside, he kicks it shut with his foot. He delicately sets Keith down on the bed.

They’re both blushing, it’s visible even in the darkness of the bedroom. Keith is worse. The red spreading from his chest and up through his shoulders and neck, over his cheeks and all the way to the tips of his ears. Maybe it’s because he’s the one being carried around like a fragile damsel. Or maybe it’s just because he’s only in his trunks and Shiro’s currently staring at him like he’d explode if he looked away.

 “I’m sorry I got a bit snappy with you earlier” Keith suddenly apologizes, well aware that he’s been a bit cold to Shiro all day.  

“I was tired and frustrated and I took some of that out on you, and you didn’t deserve that” He sighs, locking his eyes tightly on Shiro.

“It’s okay, as long as we’re okay” Shiro’s lips pull into a small smile, and one of his hands reaches up to push Keiths hair out of his eyes. He rests his head into the hand, reveling in the cold feeling of the metal against his face. Keith’s never liked the cold, but Shiro’s hand is different. It’s cold, but he knows It’s Shiro, and that makes it feel so much warmer.

“We’re okay… I could really use a good night sleep though, I think we both could…” His body shakes with a loud yawn as if on cue, and Shiro chuckles.

“Then a goodnight’s sleep we will get” Keith crawls into bed first, then scoots over for Shiro to join him. It’s not awkward this time. They don’t hesitate to touch like the first few nights. They go for eachother immediately; Keith curling into Shiro’s side, Shiro’s arms wrapping around him, and their legs inter-twining.

It’s all so familiar and comfortable. He’s surrounded by Shiro, by his warmth and by his scent. He buries himself in it, and that makes him feel so incredibly safe and before he knows it, he’s sound asleep.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Again, so sorry about the unprompted Hiatus. I know I suck. Hopefully I can keep on it better and I hope you guys liked this chapter. Originally Keith blew the fuck UP. but I think I like it better this way, he's a bit more mature and leveled now.  
> Let me know what you think!  
> Feel free to calm chat it up with me on tumblr about anything voltron or sheith related @gaythoughtsandfeelings or hit me up for my discord!


	11. First day on the job

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Voltron is officially in action

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello and sorry that I am complete and utter garbage! I fell off the wagon a while ago, things got kinda bad for me in my person life and to top that off I got a massive case of writers block. More so on this story then on anything else. I am really sorry about that. But I am back now, and filled with fresh motivation and creativity! Hopefully no more unplanned hiatuses for me!   
> This chapter was a real pain to write, it took me weeks and I stared at it to the point I hated it but hopefully you guys wont.   
> Enjoy :)

Keith wakes the next morning at the first sight of sunlight. He rolls out of bed as quietly as he can, giving Shiro more time to sleep. Not in the mood to run all the way back to his own apartment, he decides to rummage the sleeping black paladins closet. A plain black shirt; that’s all he takes. In clothing, Shiro wears about two sizes bigger than him. He can get away with a shirt or a jacket, but Shiro’s jeans on the other hand would look ridiculous on him. Last minute, Keith steals a pair of socks as well. Then he carefully exits the room. He goes back to his guest quarters and tugs on his pants from the previous day, as well as his signature boots. He runs his hands through his hair, just to get it out of his face, and then he makes his way to the kitchen... If he can find it, that is. The Castle of Lions is a ‘Castle’ for a reason. It’s huge. Like, ridiculously huge. Shiro gave him a tour the other day but he’s sure he still hasn’t even seen half of the place. He’s also convinced that Allura’s got plenty of secret rooms here that no one else knows about. After all, Shiro didn’t know about the armory. It takes him a couple minutes longer then it should have, and he almost took a wrong turn, but he does find a kitchen. And Hunk. 

“Good Morning!” Hunk beams at the first sight of another human being. He’s already made a mess of the kitchen. A useful, wonderful mess. The whole room smells absolutely delicious. 

“Morning” Keith grumbles back, heading to the coffee pot that’s suspiciously empty. Hunk doesn’t seem like the type to make only enough for himself. That means the poor man is running off of sheer optimism and self-made energy. Keith is amazed.

“Hope you’re hungry!” Keith eyes the several pans Hunk has going on the burner. There’s eggs, bacon and sausage all ready. A bowl of batter for what Keith assumes is going to be pancakes, and there’s the beginnings of toast set out as well. 

“Definitely” He’s starting to feel the effects of skipping dinner yesterday, as one look at that pan full of bacon has his stomach rumbling loudly. 

“Sorry it’s not much. This place doesn’t have a very well stocked fridge” Hunk frowns as he shuffles the eggs around in the pan. Keith stares at him like he’s insane. To Keith, this looks like the breakfast of a five-star-hotel. He can’t remember the last time he had pancakes, let alone homemade ones. Keith is used to scrambled eggs and toast, and maybe a bit of bacon if he’s just gone grocery shopping. This is luxury. Hunk isn't making scrambled eggs, He realizes. Hunk is making omelets. Cheese omelets. Keith can’t remember the last time he had one of those either. 

“It looks amazing, Big Guy. I don’t think anyone will be complaining,” He pats Hunk on the back, trying his best to be encouraging. It earns him a small smile. He goes back to making his coffee, and for the first time in years, Keith makes a family sized pot. He makes as much as the machine can possibly make, hoping it’s enough for everybody, and he takes about half of what he normally would, just to make sure they won’t have to make a second pot. 

“Anything I can do to help?” He offers, once he finishes downing his coffee, and officially feels like an actual human being again. 

“Uh sure? You can start making some toast,” He nods his head and goes to work, popping two pieces of bread into the toaster. There’s only one type of bread in the whole kitchen, so he doesn’t have to make multiple choices. He also chooses the simple route, just making one piece per person. 

The next person in is Coran. Who tries to help but is promptly shooed away by Hunk. Then Pidge stumbles in, hair an absolute mess and being drowned in a shirt that is way too large to be hers. She makes a beeline for the Coffee, and all but worships Keith for making it, then goes on to worship Hunk for making her a special serving of turkey bacon. Then Shiro rolls in, seemingly unaffected by the early hour. He’s already clean, showered, shaved and dressed for the day. He’s probably been up since Keith left. But he says nothing to his fellow paladin slash bedmate. He greets everyone with a very stern and chipper “Good Morning!” And is answered by two groans, a just as chipper greeting back, and a muffled greeting from Hunk while his face is shoved in the fridge to find more cheese. 

Allura is the next in, she saunters in similar to the way Shiro did. She’s wide awake and ready for the day. Lance strolls in a minute later, the complete opposite. Lance is still wearing a fluffy blue bathrobe with matching slippers, his hair wrapped in a floral looking shower cap, and there’s a bright green goop slathered across his face in a mock mask. He doesn’t greet anyone. He has headphones in to block everything out as he heads straight for the coffee. 

Shiro finishes his coffee just as Hunk finishes serving all of the plates. 

“So, since we’re all here and Ryou is still asleep, I think now is the perfect time to discuss today’s plan?” Allura claps her hands together with enthusiasm, and Keith watches her with cautious eyes, not liking the way that sentence is phrased. 

“I’ve devised a simple schedule so that we can all take equal turns training and simultaneously operating as Voltron!” Yeah, Keith definitely doesn’t like the sound of that. 

“After breakfast, Shiro will do his usual patrol as Lion shadow until noon, I’ll back him while Coran runs some drills with the four of you. At Noon you all can take a break, then you’ll each take a short test run in the field with Shiro. After tha-“ 

“Okay, I am going to stop you right there” Keith puts up a hand,  signaling for Allura to cease her explaining, which she does not look happy about. 

“I have a job. So do Hunk and Lance. We can’t keep missing work-“ 

“Voltron is a full-time job” Allura insists, although both Hunk and Lance look like they want to agree with Keith. He needs a good reason for them to back him up. He can’t lose that job. He needs that job. He needs the back up plan, and he needs the connection. That’s one thing he can’t give up. 

“No, Voltron is a  _ dangerous _ job. That’s why the original paladins all had secret identities. Right? Everyone except Alfor chose to live a life separate from Voltron so that their enemies couldn’t go after their personal lives? Their families? I don’t know about you guys, but I have people out there that I care about, and don’t want them to be dragged into this,” It’s a good point, and it’s not a complete lie. It’s one of the first things The Blades taught him. Your life as a blade was a secret and separated from your daily life. Equal, but separate. The first team Voltron all went by aliases and nicknames given to them by the people. Alfor, Allura’s father, was the only one who chose to keep his identity open, in order to run the Castle of Lions. They all had families. People they wanted to protect. Letting their identities be public brought unwanted attention to those loved ones. Keith knows his fellow paladins would want the same thing now. 

To his Left, Shiro looked at him curiously. Keith already knows he’s trying to figure out those unmentioned people he wants to protect. As far as Shiro knows, Keith doesn’t have anyone. He knows about Keith’s foster parents, sure. But the thing is, Shiro has never met them. He’s never seen pictures of them. He doesn’t even know their names. As far as Shiro knows, Keith’s foster parents were distant, and they don’t have much of a relationship. It’s not completely wrong. With his parents being Blade members, they were constantly gone on missions while he was growing up. They’re still gone most of the time. But that doesn’t mean that he doesn’t care about them. It doesn’t mean that he needs The Galra trying to go after their day lives. Although, they’d be hard to find. As a Blade member, the only records that show of you are the ones you want to be seen. 

“Uh, hate to say it, but Mullet’s right. I don’t need anyone going after my family. They get enough as it is with me being a cop” Lance strangely and surprisingly is the first to back him up. It gives Keith a bit more respect for the officer. Not because he agreed with him, but because instantly jumping in shows how much he cares about his family… Considering Lance had been boasting about the fame and glory of Voltron just the day before. It means something. 

“I don’t want to do that to my family either… or to the Bulmerians, they have already dealt with The Galra enough. I don’t want to bring any more attention to them” 

“My mom lives alone, she’s completely vulnerable and she’s gone through a lot as it is.  I don’t want to make things harder for her” Hunk and Pidge join too, faces pulled into deep frowns as they contemplate the consequences. 

“Allura, they’re right. We never put my name out there for Ryou’s sake once we had him. If they all just abandon their normal lives now, right at the rise of Voltron, it will eventually cause suspicion. This is important.” Shiro is the last to agree, but his word is the nail in the coffin. His point is what makes Allura sigh and give in with a nod of her head. 

“How is Voltron supposed to operate though if three of you are constantly gone?”  

Keith hesitates for a moment, realizing that Allura is turning the table towards him, and putting the pressure on. He takes a second to glance around the table, trying to figure out the schedule in his mind. 

“Pidge and Shiro can take the morning till afternoon. Hunk and Lance can take the afternoon till night, while Pidge and I train and Shiro rests. Shiro and I can take the Night shift till the early morning and this would be Pidge’s time to rest while Hunk and Lance train. You or Coran can watch the monitors, while Shiro and I rest, and you can wake someone up if there is an emergency. This way we all train. We all get field experience. And we all get an appropriate amount of time to rest and live our lives” One thing about Allura’s plan that Keith didn’t like, was that Shiro was constantly on the clock. Shiro needed rest too. He needed a life too. Keith’s schedule wasn’t perfect, but it was something. It was a basis. Something to build off of. 

“It might work” Allura hums after a second of thought

“I’d have to play around with it and the exact times and hours, but it might actually work” She approves, and Shiro’s hand somehow finds it’s why to Keith’s shoulder to give it an approving pat. 

After that, Keith makes a point of finishing his food as fast as he can without choking. In minutes, he’s dismissing himself from the table to get ready for work. He returns in about an hour, completely ready to start his day, bag draped over his shoulder and Knife securely strapped to his back beneath his clothes. 

“Keith, do you mind taking Ryou with you? You are going to the same place after all, no need for two trips” Lance and Hunk have both already left, and Allura and Pidge have gone to get ready for their shift. Leaving Keith alone in the main hall with Coran and Shiro. Keith stares down into Ryou’s wide and excited eyes.

“Uh yeah. Sure. You don’t mind, Buddy?” Keith shrugs, securely hiding his worry. He was going to stop by his own apartment for his things, but he can’t do that with Ryou present. He’ll have to figure something else out. He doesn’t have a sensible excuse not to. 

“Let’s go!” Ryou seems more than happy to be stuck with Keith. He grips onto Keith’s right hand and tugs. He’s never seen a child quite so excited for school. 

“Guess that’s a  _ yes _ ” Keith chuckles briskly. He looks up from the mini Shirogane to find his Shiro watching him intently with the softest smile. 

“You can take my car, no need for you guys to walk” Shiro realizes he’s been caught staring and a light blush sweeps itself across his nose as he digs around in his pockets. He pulls out a keyring with four different keys on it. The largest among them clearly meant for the car, but he can’t help but wonder what the others are for. 

“Thanks” He grips the keys tight in his hand, a small smile worming its way onto his face. 

“Hunk and I made lunches for you both as well! They’re in Ryou’s rucksack!” Coran breaks the building moment, when he pats Ryou’s too-big-for-his-body, galaxy themed backpack. 

“Thanks, Coran” He breaks his eyes away from Shiro to give a polite nod to the older man. Who grins back. 

“Not a problem, Number Three!” He beams and honestly, Keith is barely surprised by his confusion. He swears the man speaks in old tongue twisters. 

“Number three?” He dares to ask.    
“I have you ranked by height” It’s explained, as if it were completely common and a rational thing to do. 

“Alright then. Good Luck out there today” Keith takes a slight step back, ready to head for the Garage. 

“Good luck to you too, Keith” Shiro steps past him, and gently pats his shoulder again as he goes. Strangely enough, it makes his whole body feel warm. 

  
  
  
  


Ryou is usually a ferocious little ball of energy. Today his excitement is triple his usual, and honestly, Keith found it both terrifying and amusing. Ryou talked the whole way to the school, it was constant ranting from the seven-year-old about anything and everything. He ran around the classroom while Keith set things up before the other students got there. He talked through the lesson. Not in a bad way. He was just way more willing to speak up or volunteer than usual. He was more playful at break and lunch. Talking non-stop to his friends. Keith could see him out the class window. Talking loudly with his hands, a big smile on his lips. Keith doesn’t quite understand until after school rolls around, and he’s escorting all his students outside to meet their parents. Ryou clings to his hand yet again as Keith dismisses child by child. Every parent and guardian that approaches him does a double take at the child standing happily beside him. No one asks him anything to his face, but he hears them whisper to each other, and he has an idea of what they’re saying. 

He brings Ryou home, back to the castle of Lions. Shiro is back from his shift with Pidge, but he’s sound asleep. So, Keith takes Ryou to the living area to play and to help him with his homework. Although he really doesn’t need much help. Much like Shiro was, Ryou is a very smart boy that learns rather quickly. 

After a bit Coran takes Ryou so that Keith can train with Pidge. 

They spar together, and Keith goes easy on her, knowing she’s not used to hand to hand combat like he is. She handles herself well enough for a beginner though. After a while, they fight the gladiator bot, at the beginner’s level, and together they actually beat it. It’s not easy though. Pidge gets knocked pretty hard, and Keith is certain he has a new bruise on his left side, but they still won. It took them a whole thirty minutes, but they officially beat the gladiator bot and that’s all that matters. 

“You did pretty good” Keith commemorates her. She certainly lasted a lot longer than she did yesterday. She seems more focused. More determined. 

“Not so bad yourself” She jokes, nudging his side with her elbow as they walk out of the training room together. “You ready for your field run?” 

“Ready as I’ll ever be” He sighs. Not quite sure what to expect. He knows it’ll be a completely different experience from when he’s acting as red blade. 

“Good Luck” Pidge claps him on the back, sending him off in the opposite direction, knowing he’s due to meet Shiro in the Garage. 

He sucks in a deep breath, and mumbles to himself “Thanks… I’m gonna need it” 

  
  


“You’re late” Shiro greets him in the garage five minutes later, an eyebrow raised and an amused smile on his lips. It’s odd to see him in the Lion Shadow suit and not be hiding from him. Usually, that uniform is Keith’s first sign he needs to flee the scene. That instinct is still in him. 

“I’m early” Keith corrects, noting that Hunk and Lance have just barely just gotten back in, meaning there was no rush to send them out. Shiro on the other hand…

“I’ve been waiting fifteen minutes for you” But he’s not being serious, he’s just messing with him. He used to do the same thing back in school. He’s pushing. Egging him on. Shiro loves setting a fire under Keith. 

“Not my fault you’re an overachiever” He jabs back, hiding his grin beneath his helmet. He makes his way to the Red Lion, and settles on her, hands clenching at the handle bars as she roars to life. He kicks the stand up, breathing a sigh of relief. She’s still accepting him. That’s good. He has to keep it like that. 

“We going or not, Old Man?” He teases through their now open comm chanel,  because he knows that Shiro hates it. Shiro is only a few years older, but Keith never misses the opportunity to heckle him about it. The new white streak of hair doesn’t help his case. 

“We’re not racing, Keith” Shiro warns him as he climbs onto the Black Lion. Keith revs his engine as a warning. 

“A race implies that you have a chance at winning” He barks out a laugh and he can hear Shiro huff through the comms. 

“Keith” He warns but by the time the last syllable  hits his tongue, Keith is already bolting out of the garage.  

  
  


“Getting slow in your old age, Huh?” Keith meets Shiro at one of the designated look out spots, right at the edge of their district, at the very top of a recently constructed and currently empty parking garage. He got there first. Shiro is a whole six minutes behind. 

“You know I am only like, three years older than you? Right?” Shiro unmounts his lion. Keith has chosen the furthest corner of the structure to set up base. Aka, that’s where he’s chosen to park his Lion and sit. 

Shiro approaches him slowly. Step by step. The way you would approach a wild animal that you’re expecting to flee. 

“I am not the one with white hair and a child” Keith points out the age markers. Most people in their mid-twenties do not have children, and if they do, it’s a new born, not a seven-year-old. Most people also don’t get white hairs so young. Although Keith knows that’s a gift from the Galra, not nature. 

“That’s from stress, not age” If it were not for the helmet, Shiro would probably be self-consciously toying with that white bit at the forefront of his hair. 

“Never said it didn’t look good” Keith teases “In fact, have you considered going all white?” He smirks behind the safety of the visor. It’s a joke, but there is some semblance of truth to it. He finds Shiro’s white strip of bangs oddly charming. The all white concept intrigues him. Although, to be fair, Shiro could never be anything but gorgeous in his eyes. 

Shiro grimaces and shakes his head to that idea. “Not so sure about that…” He hesitates as he settles into his natural spot besides Keith. Where he always seems to belong and fit so perfectly. 

“Also” He starts, helmet facing straightforward, not daring to look at Keith as he speaks “At this point, at least to Ryou, I am pretty sure he’s your kid as much as he is mine” It’s so soft and gentle and full of connotations but it’s said with so much confidence. It’s stated as a fact. There’s something about Lion Shadow that radiates so much more confidence then his normal Shiro. It’s not bad, just different. He says everything with so much more conviction. It makes Keith’s heart feel like it’s on fire. 

“We’re terrible parents” He tries to put the mood back on it’s light hearted track. He has a feeling that Shiro is heading for something a little heavier than he can handle at the moment. He needs to keep this in the right direction. 

“Shiro? Keith? Are you there?” Allura’s voice breaks through the comms, cutting off their conversation, and giving Keith the distraction that he was praying for. 

“We’re here. What’s up Allura?” He’s quick to answer, turning away from Shiro as he talks. He can feel Shiro studying his body, and he’s suddenly very thankful for the armor that hides him away. 

“Are you ready for your first job of the night?”    
“Already?” “What do you have for us?” Shiro sounds almost disappointed, while Keith is eager and ready. It’ll be interesting doing things the Voltron way, but he’s dying to get back out in the field, and away from this conversation. 

“A robbery on the corner of third. A man was spotted breaking down the front doors of the museum. He’s been deemed armed and dangerous. The police our on their way, including Lance. This is a good opportunity for Voltron.” Keith and Shiro are both already on their Lions and out of the structure by the time she finishes talking. 

“Wait” Keith runs over the briefing in his head again. It doesn’t make sense to him. The city museum is huge, and well-guarded. One wouldn’t just storm through the front door, where a bulk of the cameras and guards are. And you certainly wouldn’t do it alone. “That’s not a one-person Job” Keith warns through the calms, and Shiro’s voice quickly follows. 

“Pidge! Get Pidge on the coms!” He instructs. It takes a second, but she does answer, voice riddled with sleep and anger. 

“What do you want?!” She growls, and Keith makes a quick mental note to never wake her up. 

“Pidge! I need you to get into the Museums security system and tell us what we are up against” Shiro’s voice is so calm and so much deeper than usual. It’s sturdy and cold despite the rush of the moment. It’s the voice of a leader. 

“Got it. I’ve got eyes” She does as she’s told, and not a moment later is she reporting back to Shiro as they zoom across the town.  

“There’s just one guy. He’s wearing a mask, I can’t see his face. But he’s tall. Maybe 5’11? He’s got light brown hair and he’s kinda- oh my gosh what is that” Pidge’s voice goes up an octave in excitement as Keith tries to run his mind through every criminal he’s ever met. But it’s too vague. There isn't enough to the description. 

“He’s got a robot! Some kind of high-tech A.I. in the form of a drone. It looks homemade though, I gott-” 

Keith cuts her off immediately because he knows exactly who it is. Not too many thief’s carry that kind of tech with them. 

“Pidge, focus! That’s too big of a job for one person, even if he does have an AI, I need you to scan the surrounding area, see if you find anything suspicious” Keith has only ever fought one person as red blade that meets Pidge’s description, and has a robot like that. They’re a good thief. Smart, well planned and skilled enough to get away with it. Keith doesn’t know much about him, but he knows he never, ever works alone. 

“Oh! Oh yeah, that definitely counts as weird and suspicious” Pidge chimes in. 

“What is it?” 

“A girl” 

“A girl isn’t exactly suspicious Pidge” 

“A girl that’s flirting with Lance” She clarifies with a snort and Keith knows right away that has to be it. 

“Where is he stationed?” 

“Half a block behind the museum. He’s the only one stationed there” That’s it. There’s no way it’s not. 

“Coordinates Pidge!” in seconds his Lion is updated with the GPS location of Lances squad car, and he and Shiro make a sharp left at the last minute. In the distance he can see the flashing blue and red lights and he knows they’re close. 

“Guys, I lost him. He’s not in the museum anymore” Pidge warns, and Keith leans forward, forcing his Lion to speed up. 

“They’re making an escape” 

Keith rounds the final corner just in time to see a squad car start and light up, taking off towards the museum faster then Keith could blink. 

“Is that Lances’ squad car?” He asks in shock, halting his Lion to a stop as it zips past him. 

“Is that Lance?” Shiro chimes in as he pulls up right behind him, pointing his attention to further up the street, where sure enough, Lance has been handcuffed to a telephone pole. Keith lets out a short laugh. 

“I’ll take care of Lance. Keith, stop that car” Keith nods without hesitation, starting his Lion back up and swerving around. “Be careful, Keith! You’ve got this!” Shiro calls after him, voice echoing through the comms the way they would an empty canyon. 

He revs his engine as an answer, shifting his body forward and clutching down on the gas as hard as he can. His Lion gains massive speed quickly, and with in seconds he’s got Lances squad car in sight again. Unknowing or fearing pedestrians either pull over or part lanes to give the rogue cop car space. 

There’s two people in the car. The girl that was with Lance, and the guy that was in the museum. 

Keith speeds after them, swerving through traffic and risking the chance of running through lights and stop signs but they’re still just out of reach. 

“Keith!” He hears Pidge’s voice warn him over the comms, triggering him to lean out of the way just in time as a bullet flies straight towards him. It lands in the asphalt right behind him, and he glances at it with wide eyes before snapping his head back up to stare at the car. The women that was flirting with Lance is now hanging out of the passenger window, blonde hair swishing in the wind, long arms focused, she’s holding a small handgun, barrel directed exactly at Keith. She shoots again, and Keith leans to the right, just barely missing it, but it wedges itself into the tire of a nearby car. 

“Shit!” He curses to himself. “Allura! Can this armor take a bullet?!” He dodged another shot,  waiting until the last minute so that it’ll wedge into the ground, and not another car, or worse; a person. 

“The bullets will not penetrate the suit but they wi-” Allura’s voice, sweet and concerned informed him, giving him all he needs to hear. He commands  his helmet to temporarily turn off his comms. He doesn’t need to hear them right now. He’s just going to get a lecture, and for now he needs to focus.

Allura said that the Lions tap into the individual quintessence. That the Lions speed directly correlates to Keith’s own. He needs to go full speed. He can cover it later. Call it adrenaline or something. If he can combine his speed with a direct shot, instead of having to keep dodging, he should get close enough. It’s not going to be easy, and it’s probably going to hurt like hell, but it’s his best chance.  

He takes in a deep breath, clears his mind, and then surges forward.  The girl fires again, and the bullet embeds itself in the armor surrounding his left shoulder. He groans in pain, clenching his teeth and clutching tighter at the handles. There’s no bullet in his body, but it feels like someone just whacked him with a metal baseball bat. Another bullet flies straight into the center of his chest and, fuck, yeah, that was going to bruise. But it didn’t slow him down. If anything, he sped up. He’s close enough now to catch the girl mouthing curses. She aims again, but this time for the tires of his motorcycle. He’s surprised and oddly proud when it doesn’t pop. It gives him an idea too. She keeps shooting, two more bullets land on Keith. Another on his chest and one on his right leg. 

His body aches and he’s running out of energy but he’s finally close enough. 

“Autopilot” He commands the Lion, letting it steady itself so Keith can pull out his Bayard. The metal in his right hand extends and elongates into a glistening sword. He holds onto his Lion with his left hand, and as he pulls himself up to the left side of the car, he reaches to slash both tires on the driver’s side. Quickly he pulls himself around the car to do the same to right, gaining a shot to the side in the process. With all four tires popped, the car has no choice but to stop, and Keith parks his Lion right in front of it. He steps off the bike quickly and pulls up the shield that goes with his Bayard to deflect the last of the theirs bullets. With one last burst of energy, Keith uses the rest of his excess speed to knock both out before they can run or put up a fight. 

He leans his back against the car, Bayard vanishing as he reaches up to turn his comm link back on.    
“Keith!” He hears several voices shout at him at once, and he winces. 

He leans back against the car to keep him from collapsing to the floor, and lets out a heavy sigh that is far more painful then it should be before responding. 

“Hey. Tell Lance I got his car back.” 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Again, so sorry about the lack of updates. It's ridiculous how long it has been.   
> But hopefully you liked this chapter, and hopefully chapter 12 will be up soon (it's already fully written, just needs to be Beta read) and I am already working my way through chapter 13.   
> Please let me know what you guys think. Your comments mean so much to me.   
> You can also come talk to me over on tumblr @ https://gaythoughtsandfeelings.tumblr.com/


	12. Mission

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Keiths got a job to finish

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> OOF

Keith didn’t say a word on the way back to the castle of Lions. He shut his com channel off, and sped home long before Shiro could even try to catch up to him. Back at the castle, he shed his armor in the garage and booked it to his room before anyone even saw him.

Shiro didn’t understand the sudden extreme shift in his attitude. One second Keith is smirking and bragging about his win. He was teasing Lance and he sounded so proud of himself. Then Lance finishes up with the arrest, and Keith suddenly hops back on his lion and leaves without following up. 

Twenty minutes later Shiro stands outside of Keith’s bedroom door, repeatedly knocking his fist against it, a worried scowl settled onto his lips. 

“Keith? Keith, I know you’re in there. I need to know if you’re all-right?” He keeps calling to him. Fear has settled and made home in his stomach as it twists with all the awful possibilities of what could have happened. The paladin armor is strong. But there is only so much it can take. It was designed to be impenetrable to bullets, that doesn’t mean they can’t still hurt. The force alone could have done a lot of damage. Not to mention the fact that he probably pushed his powers past their limits with that stunt. Keith could have seriously hurt himself out there, and the thought of that ate away at Shiro’s insides. 

“Keith! Please! I know you can hear me! I just want to make sure that you’re okay!” Shiro keeps knocking and pleading until finally he hears the subtle sound of the lock, and then the door slowly cracks open. 

“I’m fine, Shiro” Keith sighs, but he hides most of his body behind the door and Shiro knows instantly that he’s lying. 

“Let me in.” 

“Shiro, I don’t thin-“

“Let me in, Keith” He repeats himself, and Keith once again sighs before stepping away from the door to let the older man in. Shiro quickly pushes the door open and just as quickly closes it behind him. Keith stands near the bed, looking anywhere but Shiro. He’s free of his paladin armor, and all clothes except his trunks, and there is a towel laid out on the bed, as if he was preparing for a shower. 

“Oh Keith” there are multiple dark bruises scattered across his body, and there are dark bags under his tired eyes. 

“You gonna lecture me?” He sounded bitter, tired, and still refused to look Shiro in the eyes. Shiro takes a step closer, to get a better look at the bruises, and shakes his head. 

“I’m not going to lecture you. It was a dumb and risky move, yes, but I know why you did it, and it worked. I just want to make sure you’re okay” 

“I’m fine, Shiro”

“You don’t look fine.” Keith’s lips press into a tight line as Shiro pushes the situation. Usually, he’d let it go. Drop it. But he knows Keith. He knows when he needs to be left alone and he knows when he needs help. And right now, Keith needs help. He’s just too stubborn to admit it. 

“Shir-augh!” Keith starts to complain but is promptly cuts himself off with a deep pained groan as Shiro very lightly pokes the edge of the bruise on Keiths shoulder. He doesn’t even poke the center of the bruise, he pokes the normal skin next to it, and even that is enough to get a reaction.  

“You sure you’re alright?” Shiro teases, as he pulls his hand away to watch Keith try to cross his arms in displeasure, only for the injured boy to realize he’s far too sore to move like that and give up. 

“Okay, yeah, it hurts.” He admits, and Shiro nods his head expectantly. 

“No shit. Getting shot at is a pretty painful experience. Thanks for admitting it. Now go take a hot shower, and I’ll be back with a first aid kit and some food” Keith stares helplessly at Shiro for a minute before mumbling out a ‘thank you’ and retreating into the conjoined bathroom. 

Shiro leaves to do as he promised. He goes to the med bay first, to get Keith some pain reliever, some wraps and some salves for his bruises and tense muscles. Then he heads to the kitchen and heats up a container of left-over mac-n-cheese from hunk. He assures his fellow paladins that Keith is okay, and he’s just a bit sore and bruised. He also warns his nephew that he’ll probably be in Keith’s room for the night, and Ryou makes no argument, and makes Shiro promise to make sure Keith gets better. 

He’s back in the room within fifteen minutes, arms full of everything he needs to care for Keith, and once he’s back, he finds his friend already waiting for him on the edge of the bed. He is still in nothing but his trunks, but he looks a bit more relaxed now, and a towel hangs around his neck to catch any water droplets that fall from his now soaked hair. 

“I come bearing gifts!” Shiro hides his blush behind a wide smile as he hastily hands the leftovers to Keith, who graciously takes it. He sets the first aid kit he collected down on the bed, and nestles next to Keith. 

“I fucking love Mac-N-Cheese” Keith mumbles around a mouth full of the goodness, and Shiro can’t help but smile at him. “Have you eaten yet?” Keith suddenly asks after he swallows, sticking his fork back into the Tupperware. 

“Well no…” Shiro starts, avoiding the pointed glare Keith shoots at him. “I’ll eat later.” 

“No, you’ll eat now.” 

“I’ll eat after I take care of you.” 

“Now, Shiro.” Keith repeats, and he emphasizes his meaning by holding up a fork full for Shiro to eat. 

“You’re not feeding me” He argues, but Keith isnt backing down. 

“Are you going to go eat?”

“I can eat later.” 

“No, you won’t. I know you. If you don’t eat now, you’ll forget. Eat” He pushes the fork forward again, and Shiro sighs in defeat. He can feel the already pleasant blush on his cheeks worsen as he leans forward to allow Keith to feed him. It’s odd and a bit awkward for the first few bites, but it quickly becomes normal, and Shiro gets back to his work caring for his friend. 

 Keith takes turn feeding himself and feeding the Shiro as the man rubs the balm into the bruises on his legs and begins to wrap them. He does the same for his torso, chest, shoulders and arms when they’re done eating. 

“How do you feel?”  

“Better… but still a bit sore.” Keith groans, as he rolls his shoulders back a bit. 

“Here. This should help ease the pain and help your muscles relax” Shiro hands him the pills he found in the infirmary, and Keith swallows them dry, much to Shiro’s horror, as he moves around to sit behind him on the bed. 

“What are you doing?” Keith asks, voice low and cautious as Shiro settles behind him, hands moving to remove the towel from around his neck. 

“The pills will take a bit to kick in, but there’s other ways to get the tension out of your muscles” He tries to ignore how suggestive that sounds and swears to himself that he didn’t intend for it to sound so sexual, but he knows that if Keith were to respond in that way, he wouldn’t deny him. However, he doesn’t give Keith a chance to respond. He rubs his hands up Keith’s back and onto his shoulders and begins to dig his hands into the muscles, gently trying to massage the knots out. 

“Oh fuck…” Keith lets out a pleased sigh, body relaxing under Shiro’s hands. Shiro tries to not let the sound get to him but it does. The sound of Keiths soft little moans of pleasure in response to Shiro’s touch absolutely sends his imagination rearing as a deep blush settles across his cheeks, and parts of his body begin to tingle. He very quickly pulls away. 

“Did that uh… Did that help?” He clears his throat, moving away to sit down next to Keith, and purposely keeping his eyes away. 

“Yeah… Thank you…Thank you for always taking care of me, Shiro.” 

“You’d do the same for me” 

There’s silence for a second. Feeling like they both admitted something that would have been better left unsaid, Shiro stands to his feet, and faces the door. 

“I should probably get to bed.” He announces, and starts to the door, but Keith’s got a solid grip on his bicep, and he pulls Shiro back before he can even take one full step. 

“Stay with me for the night? You know… Just to make sure I am okay?” He chokes out an excuse and it’s a really shitty one but when Shiro turns to look at him, Keiths gazing up at him with wide, desperate violet eyes and there is no way in hell he could ever say no to that face. Besides. It’s what he had originally planned on, he just made it harder to do so….

“Of course,” He promises, reaching out to gently lay his and over Keiths, who offers a little smile in return. Shiro puts the first aid kit on the night stand with the now empty container, and then strips to his briefs and undershirt before sliding into Keiths bed. He’s very careful, when Keith lays down with him, not to come in direct contact with any of the bruises, and he helps Keith find the most comfortable position, which is on his back, with Shiro draped carefully over him. 

Its odd how easy things come to him with Keith. By all means, sharing a bed with someone, especially someone injured should not be an easy thing to figure out. Holding someone in your arms, and caring for them, should not come so easily to him as it does when it’s with Keith. And an unfamiliar bed shouldn’t be as warm and soft as this one is, but he assumes it’s because he can’t be anything but comfortable and happy with Keith next to him. Sleep shouldn’t be so easy or kind either but when reality is so damn nice, it’s hard to have unpleasant dreams. 

Everything is just so easy with Keith. So natural. So perfect. Keith himself is perfect. At least, he’s perfect for Shiro. 

  
  
  
  
  


-

 

 

Keith fucked up. He royally fucked up, and he didn’t realize it until it was too late. The pain and ache in his body is quickly surpassed by the sheer panic and regret that surges through him. He doesn’t get very much time alone until Shiro is barging through his door, insistent on caring for him. He lets him. He lets him in, because Keith just has a hard time saying no to Shiro. He’s fed, and his wounds are treated and bandaged and then Shiro gives him a massage. Shiro rubs all the painful tension out of his shoulders but it’s quickly replaced by a different kind of tension. Shiro’s hands feel like magic against his skin. The stark contrast of the cold metal and the warm flesh are oddly pleasurable. His hands are strong, powerful, and yet so gentle. There’s a strange hint of restraint in his movements, as if he’s afraid he’ll break Keith. Keith wouldn’t mind that. Feeling Shiro against his bare skin sends tingles everywhere, and he can’t help but wonder how good it’d feel if those hands would move lower down... 

There was no stopping the little pleased sigh of “Oh fuck” or the slight moans of pleasure that slipped through his lips. Shiro stopped rather abruptly, moving away and refusing to look at Keith. Keith thanked him, since Shiro had no obligations at all to look after him like he does, like he always has. Shiro’s always so kind and considerate. Keith really doesn’t deserve it. He knows he doesn’t deserve Shiro. But that doesn’t stop him from asking for more. When Shiro tries to leave Keith is ready to beg him to stay. Thankfully, he doesn’t have to. He gives the first and weakest excuse he can think of but Shiro still agrees without hesitation. There’s no moment of consideration. Keith asks him to stay and so he does. It’s that simple. 

Keith lets his worry go. All the worry and regret and fear and panic that had been eating away at him earlier. He just lets it go, vowing to deal with it tomorrow. For now, he chooses to focus on the warm feeling of Shiro’s arms gently draped over him like a shield. For now, they can rest. 

  
  


Keith wakes up the next morning to Shiro’s face buried in his neck, and the alarm clock next to his bed that he doesn’t remember programing, blaring far too loud for Keith’s liking. Shiro lets out a low groan and Keith shivers at the feeling of his breath hot against his skin, and he catches the slightest brush of lips against his neck that’s a bit too much for him to handle. 

“Good Morning” He quickly chokes out as Shiro pulls away to sit up. 

“Morning… How are you feeling?” He glances at Keith as he sits up as well, eyeing the bandages he worked so hard on last night. 

“Better. Thank you” Shiro nods, and there’s an awkward bit of silence before Keith pushes himself to stand up. 

“Better get ready for work. You get the morning shift too. Remember.” 

“Right. See you at breakfast?” 

“Yup. Give me 20 minutes and I’ll be right there.” 

“Okay...” Shiro glances at Keith again, hesitating a second as he hovers in the doorway before slipping out, headed for his own bedroom. Keith lets out a deep sigh the second the door clicks shut again, and heads for the little bathroom adjoined to his room. He goes about his normal morning routine, getting ready and collecting his stuff before meeting the others in the kitchen. 

Not so surprisingly, the only people up at this time, besides him and shiro, is Hunk. Allura and Coran had apparently just gone to sleep. Hunk sets Keith and Shiro up with some eggs, bacon and toast and tells Keith that there are lunch bags in the fridge for him and Ryou before he leaves to go drag Pidge and Lance out of bed. 

Breakfast is scarfed down and then Keith gets a plate ready for Ryou while Shiro goes to wake the kid up. Just like before, Shiro lets Keith take his car so that he doesn’t have to walk, and of course he takes Ryou with him. 

The second they say goodbye to Shiro, and leave for school, Ryou becomes glued to his hip. He doesn’t stop talking during the ride there. Keith gives him a piggyback ride to the classroom at the kid’s insistence. And once inside, Ryou follows Keith around the room like a little shadow, trying his best to help Keith set up for the day. The little Shirogane only leaves his side when all the other children come in, and Keith has to start the class. At recess he chose to stay by Keith too, he sat on the floor next to Keith and colored and ate his snack while Keith graded papers. As oddly cute and charming as Keith found Ryous new found loyalty, he couldn’t have this last all the time. He still had things to do. Places to go. None of which were child friendly. When lunchtime rolls around, he insists that Ryou go get some fresh air and play with the other little kids, and although he pouts, he listens, and he leaves with all the others. The second that classroom door shuts and locks is the very second that Keiths day officially begins. 

 

Sneaking out of the classroom is easy. He hops though the side window. There’re no cameras on the sides of the sides of the buildings. It’s nothing but bushes and fence. He doesn’t take Shiro’s car. It’s not safe. He hasn’t had a chance to check it yet, but there very well could be GPS trackers in it, cameras, microphones. Anything that could send a signal back to the castle of lions would not be good for him. It’s best, actually, if they never even know he left his classroom. It’s a tight time limit, but he should be able to do it. He makes a run for his apartment, where his bike and all his other Marmora gear is stashed. He goes for his suit first. Marmora suits are state of the art. Highly advanced and designed by a brilliant technician. The suits act almost like a second skin. Close to the body but the fabric is comfortable, breathable and durable. It does not damage easily. While it cannot deflect bullets or knives like his paladin armor, it will ease the damage. It also has pads in the souls of the boots to make him appear taller, padding in his shoulders and sides to make him a bit wider as well. It’s a clever and useful design. And it doesn’t take as long as you’d think to put it on. He’s done in under a minute, and then he activates his mask, and the intelligent textile extends to cover his neck and face. The goggles that now cover his eyes give him advanced depictions of the world around him. He can see everything. Near and far. It records too. The Blade of Marmora strives for efficiency and stealth, and they always achieve what they strive for. He reaches for the black utility belt, with every go to gadget he could possible need hidden in it, clips it around his waist, and climbs onto his bike. 

His Marmora bike is nowhere near as fast as his lion, but it’s fast enough. It gets him there in time. Now he’s got twenty minutes to get out, re-stash his bike, and get back to his class. That’s totally possible. He hopes. 

Step one: Turn off the system. Everything goes out. The lights. The cameras. Everything. All it takes is for Keith to slap a little button on the main power grid and the whole thing gets fried. They’re bound to have a backup system or a generator of some kind, but he should be out of there before it’s activated. 

Step Two: Give them a distraction. A couple little explosions outside and everyone goes running. 

He’s got ten minutes at the most. Hopefully he’ll be done by then. 

Keith sneaks in from the roof access room, and then he slinks down the hallway strategically and carefully, refusing to use his speed, just in case.

This mission is just too risky. By all accounts he should not be here. As a member of Voltron…Well, as a member of Voltron, he’s violating his teammates trust, he’s taking away Voltron’s first real win and destroying his own handiwork in the process. 

As a… In the eyes of the Blade of Marmora, he has no right to be doing this either, but his past as a Blade is exactly why he is here. He has to do this.

His suit keeps his movements perfectly silenced as he shuffles quickly down the dimly littered halls. 

“We were wondering when you’d show” Keith lets out a quiet sigh as he moves towards the bars of the cell, ignoring the teasing voices that greet him. 

“Knew you wouldn’t let them send us off” They joke, but Keith only shakes his head as he reaches into the utility pouch. He doesn’t have time to safely pick the lock. He pulls out his blade, and it glows and extends in his hand as he swings it down to cut the lock. Weapons made by Marmora are crafted from Luxite, a rare and exquisite metal. It cuts through ordinary steel easily. He points to the exit with his sword, a clear sign that they need to go and fast. They’re running out of time. 

“Thanks buddy” The man laughs, and the women pats him on the shoulder before taking off. He follows after them, and then leads them out the way he came in. Outside the building, they give him one more thankful smile and salutes. 

“We owe you one!” and just like that they’re gone. More than likely they’ll steal a car in a block or two, get back to wherever they were hiding before and take off. But it’s better this way. 

Rolo and Nyma. Last names unknown. Thieves. Good ones. But if that’s all they were, then Keith would have left them in their cells. However, they’re not ordinary thieves. They’re not even ordinary humans. They’re mutants. Unregistered mutants, just like Keith. They’re extremely dangerous, Keith's dealt with them before. If they had stayed in that cell, if they had been sent away to an ordinary prison, surely havoc would ensue, and a lot of people would have gotten hurt. 

After Keith stopped the car, while he was watching Lance read them their rights, he realized three things. It was way too easy to catch them, first of all. Rolo and Nyma are masters. They’ve pulled off bigger jobs without anyone even knowing they were there. They would never choose a police car either, of all things. It’s far too obvious. Their getaways are always clean and clear. 

Two, they didn’t steal anything. There was nothing in their car. Nothing on them. They didn’t take off with anything. They were charged with breaking and entering and an attempt of theft. Nothing but Rolo left the museum, which is extremely out of character. The Rebels never leave empty handed. 

Three, again, Rolo was the only thing that left the museum, but Pidge stated that on the surveillance camera, she could see their AI. Beazer is a rather high-tech, self-functioning little robot that never leaves Rolo and Nyma’s side and is an essential part of their team. But Beazer didn’t get in the car. Beazer never left the museum, and no one looked for it. 

Nothing added up to Keith. And then Rolo glanced at him from the corner of his eyes and there was a tiny smirk on his lips and everything suddenly clicked. 

This wasn’t a job for them. There was never anything for them to steal. It was a show. Nothing more than a statement. 

What Keith doesn’t know is why. But he doesn’t care to find out.  Rolo and Nyma aren't stupid. They know that being broken out was one half of the deal, the other half is them staying the hell away and staying quiet. Hopefully, they don’t make Keith regret this decision. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Wow. Season 8 got me hella fucked up. Come scream with me about it if you'd like:   
> Tumblr: @ https://gaythoughtsandfeelings.tumblr.com/  
> Twitter @UnprovenHuman  
> Discord @ MaybeMyth #9607

**Author's Note:**

> Follow me on tumblr @ https://gaythoughtsandfeelings.tumblr.com/ for the occasional update, rant and complaint, or to shoot me a message about anything. I will literally talk about anything, and am always up for a good conversation!


End file.
